Press Release: The second hearing for the criminal defamation case filed by Ali Zafar was held today in Session Court Lahore. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) failed to attend the hearing. Earlier on January 18, 2021, the FIA did not attend the hearing either.
The honorable judge inquired about the representation from the FIA, to which he was told that no one had arrived from the agency to present its arguments. The court expressed its displeasure with their absence and remarked on the their seriousness in pursuing the case to its logical end.
It is important to note that without comments from all the parties — including the petitioners, prosecutors, and the defendants - the court cannot proceed.
Leena Ghani, through her counsel Salman Faisal and Farah Malik, submitted an application for her acquittal, based on the fact that the FIR filed against her and others is illegal.
The case was filed under Section 20 (criminal defamation) of Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), under which an FIR is not legally permissible. Typically there are two types of crimes: cognizable and non cognizable. Under Section 43 of PECA the law states that crimes filed in Section 20 are non cognizable. Leena Ghani and others are charged under Section 20. Henceforth, this means that the FIR filed against Ms Ghani and others is illegal.
The summoned defendants including Leena Ghani, Fariha Ayub, Haseem uz Zaman, Syed Faizan Raza Rizvi, Iffat Omar, and Ali Gul Pir were present in the court with their respective lawyers Farah Malik, Salman Faisal, Ramis Sohail, Jannat Ali Kalyar, Asad Jamal, and G. I. Khan. However, the FIA and the accuser in the case, Ali Zafar, were not in attendance. The judicial magistrate, Zulfiqar Bari, rebuked their non-attendance and the failure to submit the final challan in the case.
The honorable judge inquired about the representation from the FIA, to which he was told that no one had arrived from the agency to present its arguments. The court expressed its displeasure with their absence and remarked on the their seriousness in pursuing the case to its logical end.
It is important to note that without comments from all the parties — including the petitioners, prosecutors, and the defendants - the court cannot proceed.
Leena Ghani, through her counsel Salman Faisal and Farah Malik, submitted an application for her acquittal, based on the fact that the FIR filed against her and others is illegal.
The case was filed under Section 20 (criminal defamation) of Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), under which an FIR is not legally permissible. Typically there are two types of crimes: cognizable and non cognizable. Under Section 43 of PECA the law states that crimes filed in Section 20 are non cognizable. Leena Ghani and others are charged under Section 20. Henceforth, this means that the FIR filed against Ms Ghani and others is illegal.
The summoned defendants including Leena Ghani, Fariha Ayub, Haseem uz Zaman, Syed Faizan Raza Rizvi, Iffat Omar, and Ali Gul Pir were present in the court with their respective lawyers Farah Malik, Salman Faisal, Ramis Sohail, Jannat Ali Kalyar, Asad Jamal, and G. I. Khan. However, the FIA and the accuser in the case, Ali Zafar, were not in attendance. The judicial magistrate, Zulfiqar Bari, rebuked their non-attendance and the failure to submit the final challan in the case.