A district and sessions court of Islamabad on Sunday sent journalist Asad Toor to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) remand for three days in the case about his alleged involvement in a vile social media drive against Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, Geo News reported.
The FIA had pleaded with the court to grant vlogger Toor’s remand for nine days, while the latter’s counsels opposed the request.
After hearing the arguments, Duty Magistrate Abbas Shah reserved the verdict which approved the FIA’s plea and granted the journalist’s remand for three days.
During arguments before the court, Toor said he would neither surrender his mobile phone nor reveal his sources as sources were the most important thing for a journalist.
He apprised the court that he was on a hunger strike. They provided him food but he willingly did not eat anything, he said.
A journalist present in the courtroom made Toor end his hunger strike. The vlogger was on a hunger strike since his detention by the FIA on February 27.
“Toor has not eaten anything in the last 36 hours,” his counsel had told the media about Toor’s health on February 29.
“The FIA also called rescue personnel after Toor fell sick last night,” he maintained.
Imaan Mazari, Toor’s other lawyer, had said that the investigation done so far had nothing to do with contempt of judges.
“He is being pressurised to reveal his sources and social media account passwords. Asad Toor is denying to share his journalistic sources,” she said.
On February 27, Judicial Magistrate Islamabad Muhammad Shabbir sent the vlogger on a five-day physical remand and directed the agency to produce the accused again on March 3, 2024.
According to the FIR against Toor, the vlogger allegedly ran a malicious campaign against the judiciary on social media platforms X and YouTube.
It added that he had fueled anti-state activities through social media and he has been booked under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016.
