The district and sessions court in Islamabad has granted bail to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) spokesman and Information Secretary Raoof Hasan in an anti-state propaganda case, but his release is delayed, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Duty Magistrate Abbas Shah, presiding over the special court formed to handle cases under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (PECA) Act, 2016, announced the decision on Thursday.
Despite securing bail, Raoof Hasan will remain in custody as an anti-terrorism court had previously remanded him to the counter-terrorism department for two days in a separate terrorism case. This remand ends tomorrow.
Bail was granted to Hasan and nine other suspects, each against bail bonds of Rs50,000. The PTI information secretary and the others were arrested by Islamabad Police on July 22 and subsequently handed over to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
During the hearing, the defence counsel argued that the case against the suspects was based solely on the statement of one individual, Waqas Janjua. “Three women have already been granted bail; nine others await the court’s order. These suspects are salaried employees who have no connection with Raoof Hasan,” the defence counsel stated.
Reporter Hashar Ahsan