Lawyer Mirza Moiz says move reflects ‘growing insecurity’ in state, Jibran Nasir calls arrest ‘witch hunt’
Imaan Mazari, human rights lawyer and social activist, and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha. Photo file
Lawyer and rights activist Imaan Mazari and her husband, lawyer Hadi Ali Chattha, were arrested in Islamabad on Friday while reportedly heading to the district courts, drawing immediate and strong condemnation from journalists, parliamentarians and the legal community who called for their protection and a fair trial.
They were later sent to 14-day remand by an anti-terrorism court in Islamabad.
Read: Imaan and Hadi arrested, whereabouts: Shireen Mazari
“Growing insecurity”
Lawyer Mirza Moiz Baig said the arrests reflected what he described as the “growing insecurity of the state”, warning that a “series of malicious cases” against the two men aimed to silence dissent.
He said the action was “calculated to have a chilling effect” on those who defend human rights and represent marginalized communities, adding that the couple’s criticism of the justice system following the recent amendments may also explain why they have not obtained legal relief.
Commenting on the likely timetable for the couple’s release, Baig said it was “unlikely” immediately, adding that unless the Islamabad High Court quashed the cases against them, the couple could remain in detention for “at least a week or ten days”.
“Contempt for any semblance of the rule of law”
Lawyer Asad Rahim Khan said the couple were “without exception, at the forefront of defending human rights in this country” and their courage was “exemplary”.
He added that “organizing such an arrest shows this regime’s contempt for any semblance of the rule of law.”
He said every bar association in every city and province “must make common cause for their immediate release.”
The arrests of Imaan and Hadi mean that anyone with the courage to stand up for Pakistan’s most vulnerable will be persecuted and silenced; that all rights – for anyone – can be extinguished overnight.
Please raise your voice.
– Asad Rahim Khan (@AsadRahim) January 23, 2026
‘Motivated and manufactured’
Civil rights advocate Asad Jamal said that based on the information available, it could be “safe to say that these prosecutions of Imaan and Hadi are motivated and fabricated.”
He said the provincial and federal governments had “weaponized” the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) as well as the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca).
“In the same way, I think, the most powerful quarters of the Pakistani state decided to make an example of Imaan and Hadi by keeping them behind bars for months, if not years. I don’t imagine, because this type of predatory behavior by state institutions and existing governments is not new.”
“Wider context of political victimization”
Lawyer and civil rights activist Jibran Nasir condemned the arrests, saying: “The witch hunt of lawyers Imaan and Hadi proves that there is no tolerance for expressions of solidarity with Baloch voices. »
He added: “This must also be understood in the broader context of political victimization – including the imprisonment and treatment of Imran Khan, the use of Peca against journalists, the endless incarceration of Ali Wazir, the military trials of civilians and the violent repression of protests, whether for the PTI leadership, the rights of the Baloch people or to show support for Gaza. »
Nasir further criticized the judiciary, saying: “None of this can be separated from the connivance, silence and complacency of the higher judiciary, which has abdicated its public duty of personal comfort and security. »
Criticizing the establishment, he concluded: “Having stolen the elections and losing all legitimacy to govern, the regime’s insecurities force it to crush dissent with brutal force. This is not the conduct of a self-confident state, but of a state that constantly errs in imposing the silence of the oppressed.”
“The justice system is still failing”
Journalist Mariana Baabar said the judiciary is “trampling on its own laws” by not filing first information reports (FIRs), saying Hadi and Imaan were “prepared” and “fearless”.
Former senator Mushahid Hussain said the arrests were a “parody of the law and all norms of justice!” »
He added that the rule of law must prevail and both must be released immediately.
The arrests of human rights lawyers Imaan Mazari and Hadi are a parody of the law and all norms of justice! The rule of law must prevail and both must be released immediately!
– Mushahid Hussain Sayed (@Mushahid) January 23, 2026
Former MP Bushra Gohar also condemned the arrest, adding that “defending human rights and opposing oppression is not a crime.”
Lawyer Khadija Siddiqi described the incident as a “heinous situation”.
Imaan Mazari and Hadi Chattha were arrested from the premises of Islamabad High Court, Islamabad police allegedly manhandled and dragged them forcibly to arrest them! The phones recording the arrest were also seized by police. The odious state of things, an absolute…
– Khadija Siddiqi (@khadijasid751) January 23, 2026
Journalist Ahmad Noorani called the incident “highly condemnable”, while veteran journalist Hamid Mir said the arrest would “make this couple more powerful and respectable”.
Lawyer Ahmed, former president of the Sindh High Court Bar Association, said the persecution of the couple for championing the cause of the oppressed was a shame for the government, institutions and judges.
“The bar, which largely acquiesced in the demolition of the judiciary, now seems powerless. It must stand up!” he said in a post on X.
Human rights journalist Alifya Sohail also condemned the arrest, saying authorities had demonstrated a “brutality” that was “still disconcerting.”
She described how Mazari was “grabbed by the neck and shalwar by masked men twice his size”, taken out of an Islamabad High Court Bar Association van and taken in full view of the Bar President and Secretary as he made his way to the Islamabad District Courts.
Sohail added: “Each detail is more haphazard than the last. There are no more red lines.”
