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Just Earth News | @justearthnews | 16 Sep 2020
-1600274177.jpg "FIR registered against Pakistani journalist Asad Toor for 'negative propaganda' against Army")
Image: Asad Ali Toor Facebook page
Islamabad: An FIR has been registered against a Pakistani journalist for posting "negative propaganda against the state, Pakistani institutions and the Pakistan Army" on his social media account, media reports said.
The journalist was identified as Asad Toor.
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Without listening me reportedly on the complaint of a proxy character Hafiz Ehtisham Rawalpindi police registered FIR against me allegedly on being “Anti #Pakistan and propagating against #PakistanArmy on social media.” Such fascist tactics can’t silent me pic.twitter.com/4puY6vFn9J
— Asad Ali Toor (@AsadAToor) September 14, 2020
The journalist shared a copy of the FIR on his Twitter page.
It was registered on a complaint by Hafiz Ehtesham Ahmed, a resident of Rawalpindi, who claimed that "in the last few days, [Toor] has used derogatory language for high-level government institutions, including the Pakistan Army which is a grave crime according to the law", reports Dawn News.
The FIR has been registered under sections 499 (defamation), 500 (punishment for defamation) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Pakistan Penal Code and sections 11 (hate speech), 20 (offences against dignity of a person) and 37 (unlawful online content) of the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) 2016, reported the Pakistan-based newspaper.
Reacting to the incident, Toor tweeted: "IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Without listening me reportedly on the complaint of a proxy character Hafiz Ehtisham Rawalpindi police registered FIR against me allegedly on being 'Anti #Pakistan and propagating against #PakistanArmy on social media.' Such fascist tactics can’t silent me."
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan condemned the incident and tweeted: "HRCP condemns the registration of an FIR against journalist
@AsadAToor
HRCP condemns the registration of an FIR against journalist @AsadAToor on charges of defamation. The alarming increase in such actions against journalists confirms that the government is bent on muzzling freedom of expression. 1/2
— Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (@HRCP87) September 15, 2020
on charges of defamation. The alarming increase in such actions against journalists confirms that the government is bent on muzzling freedom of expression."