July 30, 2026
Hafizullah Storai Sherani
ISLAMABAD:
Against the backdrop of an ongoing crisis surrounding press freedom and freedom of expression in Pakistan, reaction continues to pour in from journalistic circles and human rights organizations regarding the notice issued to prominent journalist Asad Ali Toor by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) for July 31.
The NCCIA has directed Asad Ali Toor to appear at its Cyber Crime Reporting Centre in Islamabad on Friday, July 31, to record his stance. According to the agency, this action has been initiated under Section 26-A of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), which pertains to the dissemination of unverified or fabricated information. The summons warns that failure to appear at the designated time will result in ex-parte legal proceedings.
A central issue raised in this matter is that the notice issued by the NCCIA fails to specify which particular report, post, vlog, or piece of information formed the basis of this legal action against Asad Ali Toor. The notice contains only a generalized allegation of “dissemination of false information,” without providing any specific material, details, or supporting evidence.
Following receipt of the notice, Asad Ali Toor shared a copy of the document on the social media platform X, expressing regret over once again being targeted under the ambit of PECA by the state.
🚨🚨@NCCIAOFFICIAL summoned me on this Friday, 31 July 2026 on the complaint of the state.
چشم نم جان شوریدہ کافی نہیں
تہمت عشق پوشیدہ کافی نہیں
آج بازار میں پا بہ جولاں چلو
دست افشاں چلو مست و رقصاں چلو
خاک بر سر چلو خوں بداماں چلو
راہ تکتا ہے سب شہر جاناں چلو
حاکم شہر بھی… pic.twitter.com/bUFJtXxS9N
— Asad Ali Toor (@AsadAToor) July 29, 2026
This development has elicited strong condemnation from senior journalists, the National Press Club (NPC) Islamabad, and human rights activists.
Senior journalist Matiullah Jan termed the move highly condemnable and shameful, stating that threatening a journalist with arrest through a notice without clear allegations amounts to weaponizing the law. He questioned,
“When an accused is not even provided details of the specific charges, how can they assist in an inquiry? They need to know what kind of evidence to present in their defence.”
He further added that such “copy-paste” notices are designed to deprive the accused of an effective defence, ensuring that the process itself serves as a punishment and a path to arrest, rather than resulting in a fair, open, and transparent trial.
Prominent journalist Samiullah Yousafzai expressed solidarity with Asad Ali Toor, writing,
“Journalism and freedom of expression are the oxygen of a free society. Stay strong, brother Asad Toor. May Allah be your supporter and grant you courage.”
Officials of the National Press Club Islamabad also characterized the action as an exercise to suppress voices and create hurdles in independent journalism, demanding an immediate end to the punitive use of laws like PECA against media personnel.
This new notice comes at a time when the institutional framework for cybercrime handling in the country has been reorganized. The NCCIA was recently established as an autonomous and empowered authority after abolishing the Cyber Crime Wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to address internet-related offenses and legal violations.
It is worth noting that previously, in February 2024, the FIA detained Asad Ali Toor based on a report by a high-level Joint Investigation Team (JIT) formed to probe an alleged smear campaign against the judiciary. He spent several weeks in custody before the Islamabad High Court granted him bail in March 2024. Meanwhile, in May 2021, unidentified armed men broke into his residence, assaulted him, and interrogated him regarding his journalistic sources—an incident that sparked widespread outrage both nationally and internationally.