ISLAMABAD: An additional district and sessions court on Monday granted interim bail to advocates Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chatha in a case registered against them on the charges of alleged anti-state activities on social media.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Mohammad Afzal Majoka heard the bail applications and approved interim bail for both the lawyers. The judge restrained the National Cybercrime Investigation Agency (NCIA) from arresting them.

The court also issued notices to NCIA for submission of its response and adjourned the hearing until September 11.

According to the FIR registered by the NCIA, Ms Mazari and Mr Chatha were accused of attempting to incite divisions on linguistic grounds through social media posts and of creating the impression that the armed forces were engaged in terrorism within the country.

The FIR alleged that they held security forces responsible for cases of missing persons in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

It stated that Ms Mazari and Mr Chatha had portrayed the armed forces as ineffective against proscribed groups, including Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The case has been registered under sections 9, 10, 11 and 26 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca).

Published in Dawn, September 9th, 2025