Another Sharif media cell activist picked up over anti-army, anti-judiciary campaign

• Talal Ch using his influence to get the accused out of FIA’s custody

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) late Thursday arrested a social media activist allegedly associated with the ruling-Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz media wing for maligning the Pakistan Army and judiciary.

The social media activist was arrested after a complaint was lodged against him by Ibrar Ali, a resident of Islamabad.

According to sources, an FIA team had apprehended Anwar Adil Tanoli from Islamabad in a raid and had also registered a First Information Report (FIR) against him under Section 20 of the Prevention of Electronic Crime Act 2016 (PECA) and the sections 500, 501, 505, 109 and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

His accomplice Wajid Rasool Malik, however, has managed to flee the country.

On Friday morning, the court had remanded the accused into FIA custody for three days.

However, the FIA is reluctant to pursue the case due to the involvement of State Minister for Interior Affairs Talal Chaudhry, said the sources.

Talal Ch has left no stone unturned to get the accused out of the FIA’s custody immediately, but due to registration of the FIR, evidence of maligning the state institutions on major social media networks, Facebook and Twitter, and court remanding him into FIA custody, it has become tougher for the FIA’s high-ups to let the accused scot-free, the sources briefed.

“It was proved by the shreds of evidence obtained from various sources and the accused’s custody, available with FIA, that Anwar Adil Tanoli was managing various accounts on Facebook and Twitter through which he uploaded incendiary material against the state institutions,” the sources maintained.

It seems like the PML-N fears that investigating the accused may land them in hot water; therefore, they are using their influence to sweep the matter under the carpet.

He further disclosed that soon after the detention of the accused, recently-posted FIA Director General (DG) Bashir Memon was informed by the interior minister about the situation.

Due to political pressure, the FIA DG has allegedly grilled the newly-posted Islamabad Zone FIA Director Shakeel Durrani over the matter.

According to reports, the court had already remanded the accused into FIA’s custody, when the FIA DG directed his subordinates to release him.

The sources said that the state minister of the ruling political party is pressurising the FIA into granting the social media activist a bail. The case is being investigated by FIA’s cybercrime wing AD Mubashir.

It is noted that the social media cell is proactively busy in building party’s image as well as dispelling and countering negative things against the party. The social media cell not only deals with the image building of the party on popular social media forums, but it also draws the media policy on day-to-day political developments. While, according to some opposition party leaders, the same cell is spreading biased, fake and dubious material to defame army institutions, national policies, and judiciary.

Repeated attempts were made to call State Minister for Interior Affairs Talal Chaudhary, even messages were sent on his mobile number and WhatsApp, later, he picked up call for few seconds and then dropped it without giving his stance.