Pakistani journalist covering recent protests gets bail in terrorism case

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) granted bail on Saturday to senior Pakistani journalist Matiullah Jan, who was two days ago reported missing by family for hours before being presented in court.

The bail was granted against surety bonds of PKR 10,000.

Jan was earlier handed over by the ATC to the police on a two-day physical remand. However, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended his remand a day later.

The petition filed with the IHC asserted that Jan's arrest was declared in a fabricated and baseless case. His legal team maintains that the journalist was arrested for investigating the government’s alleged cover-up of deaths that occurred during a crackdown on protests organized by ex-premier Imran Khan’s party.

During the ATC proceedings, Matiullah Jan also stated, “I was arrested because I was working on the bodies of those martyred in the protest.”

Missing for hours

On Wednesday, Jan's son claimed that he was abducted by unidentified men in plain clothes from Islamabad.

In a complaint filed at the G-9 police station, Abdul Razzaq said his father was abducted at 11 p.m. local time on Wednesday from the parking lot of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad's main public hospital.

Jan's colleague, Saqib Bashir, who was accompanying him was also briefly detained before being released. It was Bashir who informed Jan’s family about the abduction at around 4 a.m. local time on Thursday.

Fellow journalist's eye witness account

Speaking to Nukta, Bashir corroborated what was narrated by Jan's son.

"Around 11 p.m., we were heading toward my car in the parking lot when several individuals approached us, covered our faces with a cloth, and forcibly took us away in a vehicle," he said.

With a cloth still covering their faces, the two journalists were taken into a room. The abductors told Bashir: “You have no involvement, so we won't harm you.”

The abductors were not violent, said Bashir, adding he was released two hours later at a deserted spot near I-9 sector of Islamabad.

“When we both were kept in the room, our faces were covered but Matti was constantly asking about my wellbeing, asking repeatedly 'are you OK?'”

Bashir said he was let go after two hours. "We don't have an issue with you. The issue is with him [Matiullah Jan]," Bashir quoted the men as telling him.

Multiple counts of drug possession, assault of police officer

On Thursday, the Islamabad police filed a first investigation report (FIR) against Jan at Islamabad's Margalla Police Station under the counts of drug possession and the assault of a police officer.

The FIR states that 246 grams of crystal meth (ice) were recovered from the journalist.

Rights groups condemn abduction

Rights organizations issued strong condemnations of Jan's detention. Amnesty International South Asia called it "an affront on the right to freedom of expression and media freedom," demanding his immediate release and urging Pakistani authorities to drop what they termed "politically motivated charges."

The organization emphasized that Jan was investigating fatalities and injuries from the crackdown on PTI protests when he was taken.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) also demanded Jan's "immediate and unconditional release," characterizing his arrest as an "authoritarian tactic to silence journalists."