Islamabad (Web Desk): A local court of Islamabad on Wednesday granted the police a two-day physical remand of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Chaudhry Fawad Hussain in an FIR for inciting violence against the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
According to details, the court directed the Islamabad Police to produce the accused again on the completion of his remand time on January 27.
Judicial Magistrate Naveed Khan announced the two-page verdict which was earlier reserved.
Fawad Chaudhry was produced before the court in the case regarding his “provocative speech” about the ECP officials and their families.
Earlier during hearing, the prosecutor prayed the court to grant the police an eight-day physical remand of the accused.
The counsel for the Election Commssion of Pakistan (ECP) Saad Hassan read out the contents of the first information report (FIR) before the court and said the accused had used the word ‘munshi’ for the institution.
He said the ECP was a constitutional institution and it had all powers to conduct elections in the country but it was being targeted deliberately.
The provocative language used by Fawad Chaudhry in his speech was aimed at instigating the public against the ECP. He had asked the PTI workers to reach the houses of ECP officials.
The lawyer said Fawad wanted to promote hatred against the ECP and there was sufficient evidence available in the form of electronic data in that regard. The accused had admitted his controversial statement when he (lawyer) was reading out it, he added.
The ECP’s lawyer said the people who had supported Fawad’s assertions in his speech should also be unearthed. An anti-ECP campaign was launched based on his speech and the police had to investigate him about those remarks.
On the other hand Fawad Chaudhry maintained the stance that the charges of sedition were also added in the FIR against him.
He claimed that he was not delivering a speech, rather he was talking to a news channel, and it seemed that as per the plaintiff’s lawyer criticism was a treason act,
Chaudhrty added that his statement was his party’s policy as he was the spokesperson of the PTI. It was not necessary that any such statement was also his own stance.
He said the Lahore Police handed him over to the Islamabad Police after arresting him.
"I am a senior lawyer, parliamentarian and a former federal minister, and unfortunately such fabricated cases are being initiated,” the PTI leader said.
He prayed the court to terminate the FIR against him.
The court reserved the judgement, which was announced after some time.
Earlier on Wednesday, The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday dismissed a petition challenging the arrest of Fawad Chaudhry who was arrested by the Islamabad police in the wee hours today for “inciting violence against a constitutional institution”.
Justice Tariq Saleem heard the petition challenging the PTI leader’s arrest, during a hearing that was adjourned at least four times.
The judge told Fawad's counsel that his client's arrest was not "illegal" as the police had followed the rules and procedures required for detaining the former minister.
PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry was arrested by Islamabad police from his Lahore’s residence on charges of sedition in the early hours of Wednesday.
As per the The FIR registered at the Kohsar Police Station on the complaint of ECP Secretary Umar Hameed accused Fawad of “inciting violence against a constitutional institution”. It was registered under sections 153-A (promotion of enmity between groups), 506 (criminal intimidation), 505 (statement conducing to public mischief) and 124-A (sedition) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
