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LAHORE: A judicial magistrate in Lahore court released anchorperson Imran Riaz Khan, an outspoken critic of the current government, on Friday in a treason charge.
Imran Riaz Khan was arrested on Thursday at Lahore airport on allegations of “hate speech” and uttering a “violence-inducing statement,” according to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
The court released Imran Riaz from the case and ordered his release while pronouncing its reserved judgment in the case on the FIA’s 14-day remand request.
Imran Riaz has previously appeared in the court of a judicial magistrate in Lahore. In his arguments before the court, Riaz’s counsel Mian Ali Ashfaq disputed the FIA’s demand for 14-day physical confinement and stated that a treason case cannot be brought just for expressing opposition to the government.
According to the FIA lawyer, Imran Riaz was detected publicly uttering hate speech at a conference that falls under the territorial jurisdiction of the FIA cybercrime cell. According to the complaint, the speech was then publicly posted on social media sites both nationally and globally.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the court reserved its decision on the case. Imran Riaz was detained and arrested at the Lahore Airport by the FIA Cybercrime Wing while attempting to go to the UAE.
