ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to file a reference against a local Islamabad judge for declaring “illegal” a raid this week by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on the home of Pakistani journalist Mohsin Baig, local media reported.
Pakistani authorities Wednesday raided the home of Baig and arrested him after a dramatic scuffle in which the journalist fired a pistol toward police and hit one officer in the head with the weapon, injuring him, police said.
Mohsin Baig, owner and editor-in-chief of news outlet Online and the Urdu-language Daily Jinnah newspaper, was arrested days after he appeared on a TV talk show in which he suggested that Prime Minister Imran Khan had showed favoritism by granting an award to a government minister, Murad Saeed, with whom he has a close friendship.
Authorities say police and the Federal Investigation Agency went to Baig’s home on a complaint from Saeed in which he accused the journalist of tarnishing his character.
Hours after Baig’s arrest, Additional Sessions Judge Islamabad West Zafar Iqbal ruled on a petition against the journalist’s incarceration and declared the FIA raid illegal, saying it was carried out by “irrelevant persons who were not authorized to do so.”
Advocate General (AG) Islamabad Niazullah Niazi met Prime Minister Imran Khan after the arrest and briefed him about the case.
“After meeting with the Prime Minister, Advocate General Islamabad Niazullah Niazi told Geo News that an administrative petition will be filed in Islamabad High Court (IHC) against Additional Session Judge Zafar Iqbal, who presided over the hearing of Mohsin Baig’s case regarding the FIA raid at his home,” Geo News reported. “The government in the petition will plea to IHC [Islamabad High Court] Chief Justice to act against the Additional Session Judge of Islamabad.”
“He stated that Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that no one is above the law,” Geo reported. “Mohsin Baig fired at agency officers while the session judge had exceeded his mandate in the verdict, he said.”
Speaking to the Geo News Programme Aaj Shahzaib Khanzada Kay Saath, Niazi confirmed that the government would approach the IHC.
After Baig’s arrest, which was on the charges filed by minister Saeed, police opened a separate case against him on charges he attacked FIA officers and injured one of them.
Baig’s family told reporters police and officials from FIA arrested him without giving any reason for the arrest.
Baig’s arrest has drawn condemnation from Pakistani journalists on social media. Dozens of journalists also rallied outside Baig’s media house to express solidarity with him.
The government has given no immediate comment.
Pakistan has long been an unsafe country for journalists. In 2020, it ranked ninth on the Committee to Protect Journalists’ annual Global Impunity Index, which assesses countries where journalists are regularly killed and the assailants go free.
Pakistan government to sue judge who ruled raid on journalist Mohsin Baig’s house ‘illegal’
https://arab.news/n7ysx
Pakistan government to sue judge who ruled raid on journalist Mohsin Baig’s house ‘illegal’
- Baig was arrested on complaint of minister Murad Saeed who accused him of tarnishing his character during a talk show
- Baig fired a pistol toward police and injured one officer in a scuffle when FIA officials came to arrest him at his home
Pakistan, ADB sign $730 loan agreements to boost SOE reforms, energy infrastructure
- Both sign $330 million Power Transmission Strengthening Project and $400 million SOE Transformation Program loan agreements
- Economic Affairs Division official says Transmission Project will secure Pakistan’s energy future by strengthening national grid’s backbone
KARACHI: Pakistan and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday signed two loan agreements totaling $730 million to boost reforms in state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and energy infrastructure in the country, the bank said.
The first of the two agreements pertains to the SOE Transformation Program worth $400 million while the second loan, worth $330 million, is for a Power Transmission Strengthening Project, the lender said.
The agreements were signed by ADB Country Director for Pakistan Emma Fan and Pakistan’s Secretary of Economic Affairs Division Humair Karim.
“The agreements demonstrate ADB’s enduring commitment to supporting sustainable and inclusive economic growth in Pakistan,” the ADB said.
Pakistan’s SOEs have incurred losses worth billions of dollars over the years due to financial mismanagement and corruption. These entities, including the country’s national airline Pakistan International Airlines, which was sold to a private group this week, have relied on subsequent government bailouts over the years to operate.
The ADB approved the $400 million loan for SOE reforms on Dec. 12. It said the program seeks to improve governance and optimize the performance of Pakistan’s commercial SOEs.
Karim highlighted that the Power Transmission Strengthening Project will enable reliable evacuation of 2,300 MW from Pakistan’s upcoming hydropower projects, relieve overloading of existing transmission lines and enhance resilience under contingency conditions, the Press Information Department (PID) said.
“The Secretary emphasized that both initiatives are transformative in nature as the Transmission Project will secure Pakistan’s energy future by strengthening the backbone of the national grid whereas the SOE Program will enhance transparency, efficiency and sustainability of state-owned enterprises nationwide,” the PID said.
The ADB has supported reforms by Pakistan to strengthen its public finance and social protection systems. It has also undertaken programs in the country to help with post-flood reconstruction, improve food security and social and human capital.
To date, ADB says it has committed 764 public sector loans, grants and technical assistance totaling $43.4 billion to Pakistan.
