ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday suspended the prison sentences of lawyer and rights activist Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, in a case concerning their social media posts and ordered their release on bail.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim heard the couple’s appeals against the Islamabad High Court’s refusal to suspend their sentences.
The apex court granted bail to both petitioners against surety bonds of Rs200,000 each, with the relief remaining effective until the Islamabad High Court delivers its final decision in the pending proceedings.
An Islamabad sessions court had sentenced Mazari and Chattha to 17 years in prison each on January 24 under multiple provisions of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca).
The case was registered by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) under Sections 9, 10, 11 and 26 of Peca. The prosecution alleged that the couple’s social media posts attempted to promote divisions on linguistic grounds.
The couple challenged their convictions before the Islamabad High Court and sought suspension of their sentences. The matter remained pending despite earlier directions from the Supreme Court for the high court to decide the applications expeditiously.
During Thursday’s proceedings, Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan said the court was mindful of the fact that both petitioners were lawyers and also asked their counsel to advise them to maintain the decorum of the court.
“Both are lawyers and we are keeping their honour,” Justice Afghan observed, adding that there was a distinction between a lawyer and an ordinary citizen.
The Supreme Court’s order means the couple will remain on bail while the Islamabad High Court proceedings concerning suspension of their sentences continue.
The underlying convictions have not been finally set aside by Thursday’s order; the relief concerns suspension of the sentences pending the high court’s final decision.
