LHC restrains NCCIA from arresting Imran's sister Noreen Niazi in PECA case

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday issued an interim order restraining the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) from arresting Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaf Founder Imran Khan's sister, Noreen Niazi, nominated in a case for “false, offensive, and inflammatory social media content to defame state institutions and spread fake narratives”. In the interview, Noreen alleged that Marka-e-Haq was a collaboration between the Pakistan Armed Forces and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She further claimed that India refrained from attacking Pakistan at Israel’s request because Pakistan was moving towards recognising Israel.

A first information report (FIR) was registered few days back against the appellant under Sections 20 (Offences against dignity of a natural person) and 26-A (Punishment for false and fake information) of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016, along with Sections 505 (Statements conducing to public mischief) and 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) stating that Noreen issued derogatory and inflammatory remarks against state institutions during a podcast and through subsequent clips shared on X. During the court proceedings, Noreen’s legal counsel stated in a petition that the NCCIA had registered a case against her under the PECA Act and that she intended to approach the competent court for interim bail. The defence counsel expressed apprehension that the agency could arrest her before she approached the relevant court.

The petition requested the court to grant protective bail to allow her to appear before the trial court without the risk of arrest. Accepting the plea, Justice Sardar Akbar Dogar granted Noreen one-week protective bail and restrained the NCCIA from arresting her during this period. The court also directed her to appear before the relevant court within a week to seek further legal relief.

Read: Imran Khan's sister submits initial reply to NCCIA over controversial Marka-e-Haq remarks Case Background The case arose after the NCCIA initiated proceedings against Noreen on July 18 following the circulation of an interview that went viral on social media. The agency said the “gist of allegations” was that Noreen had allegedly disseminated “false, offensive, and inflammatory social media content to defame state institutions and spread fake narratives”.