An anti-terrorism court in Islamabad issued a notice to police on Friday on an application for the provision of documents in a narcotics and terrorism case registered against senior journalist Matiullah Jan.

The case, registered at Margalla Police Station on November 28 last year, accuses the journalist of snatching a government-issued rifle, hitting a vehicle at a police barrier and possessing narcotics.

Initiation of legal proceedings against Jan has drawn strong criticism from journalist bodies and rights groups, who maintain that he is being targeted for investigating reports of alleged deaths during law enforcement action against PTI protesters in November last year.

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At the outset of the hearing today, lawyer Mian Ali Ashfaq submitted a power of attorney to Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra on behalf of Jan.

He also contended that the journalist had been “portrayed as a terrorist” in the case.

Judge Sipra remarked that the other side needed to be heard as well and issued a notice to police for November 8 on an application by Jan for the provision of case documents and adjourned the hearing until the said date.

Lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir, who has also represented Jan in the case, Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists President Afzal Butt and other journalists were also present in the court during the hearing.

At the last hearing held yesterday, the ATC had rejected Jan’s acquittal plea.

It should be mentioned that several veteran journalists and human rights activists have demanded the immediate withdrawal of the case registered against Jan.

Jan’s arrest

According to the first information report (FIR) registered against Jan at Margalla Police Station, his car was stopped at a checkpoint in Sector E-9, where he allegedly resisted arrest, rammed his vehicle into a police barrier and snatched a rifle before being subdued.

The FIR invokes Section 9(2)4 of the Control of Narcotic Substances Act (CNSA) for possessing 100 to 500 grams of crystal meth and Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) for acts of terrorism.

Jan was arrested on the night of November 26, 2024, and initially remanded in police custody. However, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had later overturned that decision and sent him to judicial custody.

His defence counsels, Advocates Imaan Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chatha, had subsequently secured his post-arrest bail.

Meanwhile, Jan had written a letter to the Inspector General of Islamabad Police (IG), alleging abduction and torture prior to his arrest.

In the letter, Jan stated that on November 27, 2024, he and fellow journalist Saqib Bashir were abducted from the Pims Hospital parking area by men in police uniforms, blindfolded and taken to an unknown location where they were tortured and illegally detained.

He claimed that police later registered a bogus FIR at Margalla Police Station, accusing him of terrorism and drug smuggling. Jan said his colleague’s sworn affidavit before the Anti-Terrorism Court confirmed their abduction.

Jan also recalled his 2020 abduction, underscoring that such acts violated his constitutional and professional rights, as well as the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Act, 2021.

He had urged the IG to appoint an honest and independent officer to investigate the case on merit.