Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar, the newly appointed acting chief justice of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), took up a petition on Monday challenging recent changes to the country’s cybercrime laws as his first case at the court.
Justice Dogar was sworn in as the IHC acting chief justice last week in a ceremony boycotted by his fellow judges, who along with four Supreme Court judges and some lawyers’ bodies, had opposed various transfers of judges.
New provisions enacted last month through the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Act (Peca), 2025 introduce harsher penalties for what the government considers “fake news”, the expansion of state oversight of digital platforms, and the creation of new regulatory bodies to monitor social media.
Justice Dogar took up a plea today filed by the IHC Journalists Association (IHCJA) last week. Newly elected IHCJA President Hussain Ahmed Chaudhry and General Secretary Raja Shehzad had challenged the amendments to Peca.
The petition had mentioned the Federation of Pakistan via the IT and telecommunication secretary as the respondent. It pleaded the court to declare the amendments ultra vires to the Constitution and strike them down.
Advocate Mian Samiuddin appeared in the court today on behalf of the journalists’ body while Chaudhry and other IHCJA members were also present.
As Justice Dogar heard the petition, he ordered that it be clubbed with other sub judice pleas on the matter and subsequently transferred the case to Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas, who heard one such petition last week.
At one point, Samiuddin urged the court to form a larger bench to hear the case, to which Justice Dogar replied that Justice Minhas would also decide on that request.
“When is the case against the Peca Amendment Act fixed for?” the acting chief justice asked.
Lawyer Samiuddin responded that the proceedings of the plea taken up by Justice Minhas on February 11 had been adjourned for two weeks.
He highlighted that the Social Media Protection Tribunal and the Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority — to be formed under the amendments — would be constituted by the government.
“The authority and the tribunal would be appointed by the government, and it can dissolve them as well. There is no independence in them,” he contended.
Subsequently, the IHCJA petition was ordered to be clubbed with other relevant pleas.
Journalists stage protests, hunger strike
Journalists have assailed the legislation as an “attack on freedom of expression”, while the opposition PTI vociferously protested the legislation’s rushed passage in the parliament.
Concerns have also been raised by Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, digital rights activists as well as the European Union.
In the latest criticism of the changes to Peca laws, RSF said the amendments were a “dangerous tool in the hands of the authorities” that can be used to “silence critics and control information” and urged the government to repeal them.
Renowned television anchors also approached the IHC on February 7 against the changes to Peca laws, seeking to have it declared null and void.
Hunger strike camps were set up across the country on February 12 in response to a protest called by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) against the Peca amendments.
As the protest continued the next day, the PFUJ warned that the agitation would continue even if the government was able to get a favourable decision from the courts.
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