ISLAMABAD: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Saturday challenged the Islamabad High Court’s decision declaring the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) Section 20 as unconstitutional, in the Supreme Court.
The FIA in its petition filed in the apex court stated that the IHC provided the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) relief “without legal justification”, claiming that the high court had misinterpreted Articles 19 and 19-A of the Constitution.
The petition also stated that the IHC’s decision resulted in the inactivity of Section 20 of PECA claiming that the decision will encourage violators to break the law.
The agency prayed the court to grant stay against the IHC’s April 8, 2022, order till a verdict is announced on their appeal.
Read more: ‘Unconstitutional’: IHC declares PECA ordinance null and void
On April 8, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) declared the controversial Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Ordinance, 2022, “null and void”, terming it “unconstitutional”.
IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah issued a four-page order while hearing identical petitions filed against the controversial Peca ordinance by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ). The court had earlier reserved its verdict.
In the written order, Justice Minallah said that freedom of expression was a fundamental right and reinforces all other rights guaranteed under the Constitution.
