Tweets case: Sindh court remands Azam Swati in police custody for 3 days

A judicial magistrate in Qambar remanded PTI Senator Azam Swati in police custody for three days on Sunday in two cases over his controversial tweets about senior military leaders.

Swati was arrested over a “highly obnoxious campaign of intimidating tweets […] against state institutions” by the Federal Investigation Agency on November 27 and has been in detention since and continues to face legal action.

The FIA booked him under Section 20 of the Prevention of Electronic Crime Act 2016 (Peca), which deals with offences against the dignity of a person, while multiple first information reports (FIRs) were registered against him for using “derogatory language” and “provoking the people against the army” in Sindh and Balochistan as well.

He was presented before the judicial magistrate in Sindh’s Qambar city today in the two cases registered with Warah and Qambar police and sent on remand for three days.

The development comes two days after the Balochistan High Court (BHC) ordered the quashing of all five FIRs initially registered against him in the province over his controversial tweets.

But the same day, two new criminal complaints were lodged against the PTI senator in Balochistan’s Bela and Winder for using “offensive language” against senior military officials, his lawyer Iqbal Shah had told Dawn.com.

Also the same day, he was flown to Sindh after his custody was handed over to Sindh police.

Cases in Sindh

Qambar Shahdadkot SSP Sadam Hussain Khaskheli told Dawn on Saturday that two cases were registered against Swati at Nasirabad and Warah police stations in the district. The FIR at the Nasirabad police station was registered on a complaint of Zameer Hussain Khoso under Sections 131 (abetting mutiny or attempting to seduce a soldier, sailor or airman from his duty), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups), 504 (intentional insult with the intent to provoke breach of peace) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

The complainants in the FIRs were different, but the sections are almost identical, he added.

In addition to these two cases registered in Qambar Shahdadkot, the PTI leader is also booked in similar cases at Saddar police station in Jacobabad, Usman Essani police station in Shikarpur and Civil Lines police station in Larkana.

‘Total violation of all laws, human rights’

After Swati’s remand was approved on Sunday, PTI chief Imran Khan condemned the treatment meted out to the senior senator.

“If anyone wants to understand why Pakistan’s economy is now a disaster, just two incidents provide the answer,” he said on Twitter, drawing a comparison between Swati’s detention and authorities being barred from arresting Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s son, Suleman Shehbaz, upon his return to the country.

“Seventy-five-year-old Senator Azam Swati has been subjected to custodial torture, beaten up in front of his grandchildren, his house vandalised and sealed, and he is being dragged from one province to another under multiple false FIRs against him in total violation of all laws and basic human rights enshrined in our Constitution.

“In contrast, an absconder responsible for billions in corruption and money laundering, Salman Shahbaz, is drycleaned and returns to Pakistan,” he said.

Action against Swati

Swati was first arrested by the FIA on charges of posting controversial tweets about the armed forces in October and was later released on bail.

The senator has alleged since that he was tortured in custody and demanded the removal of two military officials, one of whom he used foul language against in his tweet on November 26.

On November 27, the FIA arrested Swati for the second time over a “highly obnoxious campaign of intimidating tweets […] against state institutions”.

The arrest came after an FIR was registered by the FIA on the complaint of the state through Islamabad Cyber Crime Reporting Centre Technical Assistant Aneesur Rehman.

The complaint was registered under Section 20 of Peca as well as Sections 131 (abetting mutiny or attempting to seduce a soldier from his duty),500 (punishment for defamation), 501 (defamation and printing of content deemed defamatory), Section 505 (statement conducing to public mischief) and 109 (abetment) of the PPC.

Following his arrest in November, the Pakistan Electronic Media and Regulatory Authority prohibited Azam’s media coverage on all satellite TV channels.

Separate FIRs were also registered against the PTI leader in Balochistan and Sindh as well.

On December 2, Swati was brought to Quetta from Islamabad in one such case registered at the Kuchlak police station, after the end of his initial 14-day remand. Subsequently, the judicial magistrate of Kuchlak remanded Swati in police custody for five days.

But on Friday, the Balochistan High Court ordered the quashing of all five cases registered against him in the province.

However, hours after the order was issued, the PTI senator was handed over to Sindh police.

The next day, two new cases were registered against Swati in Balochistan.

The cases were registered under Sections 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 505 (statements conducing to public mischief), 153A (promoting enmity between different groups, etc), 124A (sedition), and 123A (condemnation of the creation of the State, and advocacy of abolition of its sovereignty) of the PPC.

The Capital Development Authority has also sealed Swati’s farmhouse, located on Islamabad’s Murree Road over alleged violation of building laws.