It was revealed on Saturday that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has summoned PTI leaders Barrister Gohar, Omar Ayub and party spokesperson Raoof Hasan in a case in which jailed PTI founder Imran Khan’s X account was “misused” to spread inflammatory content against state institutions.
On May 26, Imran’s official account shared a video purportedly of him saying: “Every Pakistani should study the Hamoodur Rahman Commission report and know who is the real traitor – General Yahya Khan or Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.”
The video referred to atrocities allegedly committed by Pakistani forces during the country’s civil war and claimed that the former military dictator was actually responsible for the country’s collapse.
The video is also interspersed with footage of the current civilian and military leadership, who they claim disempowered the party in the general election.
The post has sparked strong backlash and controversy, especially from government officials, and the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) cyber wing has launched an investigation into the post.
The PTI had initially disassociated itself from the post but on Friday it “owned” it and demanded that the public should read the Hamoodur Rehman Committee report, as originally demanded, and that the army should operate within the confines of the constitution.
The party, in a statement issued after the core committee meeting, claimed that the FIA was adamant on filing fresh cases against Imran.
A team from the FIA visited Adiala Jail yesterday to question the PTI founder about the post, but sources said Imran has refused to meet investigators and will only meet them in the presence of his lawyer.
Meanwhile, the notice issued by the FIA to lawyers Gohar, Ayub and Hasan on Friday said an investigation had been launched into the “misuse” of Imran’s verified X account through which “highly objectionable and inflammatory content against state institutions” was shared.
They said the posts “may cause fear and anxiety among the public and may induce or provoke anyone to commit crimes against the state, state institutions or public peace.”
The notice said the PTI trio were therefore directed to personally appear before FIA Sub-Inspector Muhammad Monib Zafar at the FIA Cyber Crime Reporting Centre on Wednesday “in the interest of justice” and record a statement in their defence.
“If you fail to appear, proceedings under Section 174 (Failure to appear in accordance with order of public servant) of the Pakistan Penal Code will be initiated against you,” the notice said.
In an interview GeoNews Hasan said all three Pakistani leaders had complied with the summons and would appear at the FIA Cyber Crime Reporting Centre.
“We are basically going to speak about reality. What is in that video?” Hasan said, referring to Imran’s May 26 post. “It contains excerpts from the Hamoodur Rahman Commission report. We have not fabricated anything on our own, nor have we targeted any particular institution.”
He said the party tried to find parallels between what happened in 1971 and whether anything similar exists today. “Whatever the issue or material, it is not something we have created, everything, every word has been taken from the Hamoodur Rahman Committee report.”
Hasan said this was why the party had repeatedly called for the publication of all reports by past major commissions, adding that “it is the right of the people to know the facts about history.”
He told PTI he rejected the “grounds” on which the FIA is probing the matter but said the three companies would still abide by legal procedures and requirements.
Asked about the party’s differing explanation for the posts and who was behind them, Hasan said the “reality” was that Imran could not see the contents of the X account as the prison did not have the necessary facilities.
“Someone might say a line or two to him at the concept stage,” Hasan said.
He asserted that the party was not targeting any institution or the armed forces but was only making an example of the current ruling class.
