FIA challenges IHC decision scrapping PECA’s Section 20
By Muhammad JuniadPublished On 04 Jan 2023
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has challenged the Islamabad High Court’s decision to strike down Section 20 of the Prevention of Electronic Crime (amendment) ordinance 2020 in the Supreme Court.
On March 8, IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah passed the verdict on the petitions filed against PECA Ordinance and its Section 20 which had made defamation a cognizable offense. The court also declared section 20 of the 2016 act “unconstitutional” to the extent of the expression ‘or harm the reputation.
Emphasizing that freedom of expression is a fundamental right that reinforces all the other rights enshrined in the constitution, the four-page verdict by Justice Minallah reads, “The criminalization of defamation, protection of individual reputations through arrest and imprisonment and the resultant chilling effect violates the letter of the Constitution and the invalidity thereof is beyond a reasonable doubt.”
IHC chief justice said that the ordinance was promulgated in derogation of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 9, 14, 19 and 19-A of the constitution.
The FIA in its application has requested the apex court to set aside the Islamabad High Court’s decision.
The agency said that the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), one of the original applicants to approach the IHC against the PECA ordinance, was given relief without any legal justification.
It requested the court grant stay against the IHC’s April 8, 2022, order till a verdict is announced on their appeal.
The ruling coalition partners Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party, who were in opposition when the ordinance was promulgated, had also opposed the amendment and submitted applications in the IHC against the law.
Their petitions, however, were rejected by the court. Chief justice Minallah said that the political party should try to play their role in the parliament rather than knocking on the door of the court.
