JIT summons 25 PTI members again in anti-state propaganda probe

This undated illustration shows the icons of social media media applications, X and Facebook, displayed on a phone screen. — Reuters/File

Barrister Gohar, Rauf Hassan and Shah Farman appear before JIT.
JIT interrogates party leaders for five hours, say sources.
PTI leaders and social media team summoned again on March 11.

ISLAMABAD: A Joint Investigation Team (JIT) has summoned 25 members of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) once again in connection with an ongoing anti-state propaganda case involving social media activities.

Although the JIT had summoned 25 party leaders on Friday, only Barrister Gohar, Rauf Hassan and Shah Farman appeared before the team, sources revealed.

The party leaders underwent a five-hour interrogation by the JIT, during which Farman, who was thrown some additional tough questions, behaved inappropriately, the sources added.

Additionally, the PTI leaders, including Hassan, Salman Akram Raja, and Firdous Shamim Naqvi, along with the social media team, have been summoned again on March 11.

Sources also said that Khalid Khurshid, Aslam Iqbal, Hammad Azhar, Aon Abbas, Aliya Hamza, Shehbaz Shabbir, Sheikh Waqas, Kanwal Shauzab, Taimur Saleem, Asad Qaiser, Shah Farman, Asif Rasheed, Muhammad Arshad, Sibghatullah Virk, Azhar Mashwani and Noman Afzal have been summoned.

Sources said that summons notices have also been issued to Jibran Ilyas, Salman Raza, Zulfi Bukhari, Musa Virk and Ali Malik, and investigations are being conducted against these individuals for anti-state propaganda.

It should be noted that the JIT investigating the case, headed by the IG Islamabad, was formed under Section 30 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016. The aim of the JIT is to recommend legal action against the individuals involved.