District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka ruled on Wednesday that “the prosecution cannot be compelled to produce any witness” while hearing lawyer Imaan Mazari’s application to summon DG ISPR Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry as a witness in the controversial tweet case against her and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha.
The court issued a notice to the prosecution regarding Mazari’s application in the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) case against her and Chattha. The filing alleges that remarks made by the military spokesman during a press conference amounted to an attempt to influence the trial and damaged the ongoing controversial tweet case.
Mazari filed the application alleging that Lt. Gen. Chaudhry labeled her a “lawyer for traitors” and a “foreign agent” during a press briefing. She claims that the statements made while her case is pending violate her constitutional right to a fair trial under Article 10-A and interfere with the trial.
The court took formal cognizance of the petition and gave a copy to the prosecution for reply. Justice Majoka noted that he had not personally seen the press conference and directed the prosecution to submit its reply before any decision is taken on the summoning of the DG ISPR.
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During Wednesday’s hearing, the cross-examination of prosecution witness Shehroz Riaz, an official of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), also continued. The defense questioned Riaz about his credentials, salary details and the evidence collected in the case.
When Mazari requested that “ISI people” be removed from the courtroom, Judge Majoka asked her to point out who these people were.
The witness admitted during cross-examination that he duly searched for Mazari and Mahrang Baloch on Twitter and that the screenshots in the case consisted of 11 pages. He also said that he did not know the difference between the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) and the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA).
In an earlier hearing on January 5, cross-examination of key prosecution witness Aneesur Rehman ended as the court screened political speeches and video statements. Several videos were shown, including footage of a speech by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, where slogans such as “uniform is behind terrorism” and “Bajwa is a thief” could be heard.
When asked if such slogans amounted to opposing the state, Rehman said he would comment only after reviewing the video in an official capacity. A video statement of former DG ISPR Asif Ghafoor regarding missing persons was also played but Rehman refused to comment on it.
During cross-examination, the witness admitted that he was unaware of whether enforced disappearances were a serious problem in Pakistan, whether a Commission on Missing Persons existed, or what the state’s policy on the matter was.
Read more: SC orders adjournment of trial in Imaan Mazari tweets case till IHC verdict
Mazari and Chattha are facing trial under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) over allegations that their social media posts sought to incite division on linguistic grounds and portrayed the armed forces as being involved in terrorism.
The FIR registered by the NCCIA alleges that the couple held security forces responsible for cases of enforced disappearances in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, and promoted narratives aligned with banned organizations including the BLA and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The couple have denied the charges and maintain that the case is politically motivated. They were indicted in October 2024 and have also filed petitions for the transfer of the case and a motion of no confidence against Chief Justice Majoka.
