District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka on Wednesday ruled that “the prosecution cannot be compelled to produce any witness” while hearing lawyer Imaan Mazari’s application to summon DG ISPR Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry as a witness in the controversial tweets case against her and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha.
The court issued notice to the prosecution regarding Mazari’s application in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) case against her and Chattha. The motion alleges that remarks made by the military spokesperson during a press conference constituted an attempt to influence the legal proceedings and were detrimental to the ongoing controversial tweet case.
Mazari filed the application, alleging that Lt. Gen. Chaudhry called her a “lawyer for traitors” and a “foreign agent” during a press briefing. She claims that statements made while her case is pending in court violate her constitutional right to a fair trial guaranteed by Article 10-A and interfere with the legal proceedings.
The court officially took note of the petition and provided a copy of it to the prosecutor’s office for response. Justice Majoka noted that he did not personally attend the press conference and asked the prosecution to submit its response before a decision was taken on summoning the DG ISPR.
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During Wednesday’s hearing, the cross-examination of prosecution witness Shehroz Riaz, an official of the National Cybercrime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), also continued. The defense questioned Riaz about his credentials, salary details and evidence collected in the case.
When Mazari asked that the “ISI members” be removed from the courtroom, Judge Majoka asked him to clarify who these individuals were.
The witness admitted during cross-examination that he had correctly searched for Mazari and Mahrang Baloch on Twitter and that the screenshots of the case ran to 11 pages. He also said that he did not know the difference between the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) and the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA).
In a previous hearing on January 5, the cross-examination of the main prosecution witness, Aneesur Rehman, concluded as the court examined political speeches and video statements. Several videos were shown, including footage of a speech by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, in which slogans such as “the uniform is behind terrorism” and “Bajwa is a thief” could be heard.
When asked if such slogans amounted to opposing the state, Rehman said he would comment only after viewing the video in an official capacity. A video statement by former DG ISPR Asif Ghafoor regarding the missing persons was also released, but Rehman refused to comment on it.
During this cross-examination, the witness admitted that he did not know whether enforced disappearances were a serious problem in Pakistan, whether there was a commission on missing persons or what the state’s policy on the matter was.
Learn more: SC orders stay of trial in Imaan Mazari tweets case till IHC decision
Mazari and Chattha are being tried under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) over allegations that their social media posts attempted to incite division on linguistic grounds and portrayed the armed forces as involved in terrorism.
The FIR, registered by the NCCIA, alleges that the couple held security forces responsible for cases of enforced disappearances in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, and promoted narratives aligned with banned organizations including the BLA and the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The couple has denied the accusations and maintains the affair is politically motivated. They were indicted in October 2024 and also filed motions seeking transfer of the case and a motion for no confidence against the presiding judge, Majoka.
