The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency has launched a province-wide crackdown on alleged “anti-state” social media activity, arresting 13 individuals across Punjab over the past few weeks, officials said on Tuesday.
The arrests were made as part of an ongoing operation targeting online campaigns against state institutions, with authorities saying that digital evidence has also been recovered and cases registered under cybercrime laws.
An NCCIA spokesperson said the operation was carried out on the directives of Punjab Director Muhammad Ali Waseem, who recently assumed charge.
He added that those arrested were allegedly involved in running coordinated online campaigns against state institutions, including the military and government officials, across multiple social media platforms. Two suspects were also accused of sharing content targeting Gulf countries.
The suspects have been booked under various provisions of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016. According to the agency, arrests were made from multiple cities, including Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, and Multan. Those detained include social media users identified as Usman, Qamar, Abbas, Tahir Mushtaq, Hamid Raza, Imran Afzal, Waqar Ahmed, Ismail, Siddiq, Arshad, Umar, Junaid, and Azhar.
It should be noted that rights group Amnesty International has earlier warned that changes in cybercrime and anti-terror laws in Pakistan have raised concerns over freedom of expression and led to arrests of journalists, activists, and opposition figures.
