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LAHORE:
The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday issued a stern warning to the director general of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), ordering him to appear in person on January 15 and warning him that he would be held personally liable if more defamatory content targeting judges appeared on social media.
Justice Ali Zia Bajwa issued the directive while hearing a petition filed by lawyer Mian Dawood, challenging an alleged campaign organized on social media aimed at defaming judges of the higher judiciary.
During the proceedings, the judge commented that the court considered the matter to be serious and would take it to its logical conclusion.
Noting the nature of the campaign, Justice Bajwa noted that “we will get to the bottom of this matter”, calling the campaign against the judges “cyberterrorism”.
The court ordered authorities to compile lists of people and social media accounts involved in running the campaign and questioned who was orchestrating the effort behind the scenes. The judge expressed great displeasure at the NCCIA’s apparent inaction and asked whether the agency’s suo motu powers had effectively ceased to exist.
Addressing NCCIA Punjab chief Hashmat Kamal directly, the court questioned his silence and demanded an explanation for the lack of concrete action so far.
“Why is the NCCIA sleeping? Such a horrible campaign is being carried out against the judges and you are silent,” the court observed.
When the NCCIA official responded that the matter was being monitored regularly, Justice Bajwa questioned why the agency had failed to fulfill its legal obligations.
Referring to the relevant legal provisions, the court reminded the authorities that the law requires actions for the removal of illegal content and asked whether at least a single tangible step had been taken in compliance with those requirements.
The court also sought clarification from Advocate General Punjab Amjad Pervez on the provincial government’s stand.
