Pakistan court grants bail to lawyers Imaan Mazari, Hadi Ali in police scuffle case

A Pakistani court granted post-arrest bail on Thursday to lawyers and husband-wife duo, Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha, in a case linked to alleged scuffles with police during a protest.

However, the pair remain incarcerated pending bail in a separate post-trial case over controversial social media posts in which they have already been convicted for 17 years.

The Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Islamabad approved the bail petitions, requiring surety bonds of PKR 10,000 ($35) each. The hearing was presided over by Judge Abul Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain.

During the hearing, the lawyers’ counsel, Riasat Ali Azad, described the case as “fabricated and baseless,” arguing that the FIR had been registered without the accused’s prior knowledge.

Azad further said the complaint stemmed from a “concocted and non-existent incident” and informed the court that he too had been named in the same case without being aware of it.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the court reserved its decision and subsequently granted the post-arrest bail. The case was registered at the Secretariat Police Station in Islamabad.

Ongoing post-trial conviction case

Mazari and Chattha have not yet secured bail in a separate post-trial case related to controversial social media posts, in which they have already been convicted and remain incarcerated.

The court has so far issued notices to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) regarding that matter and a bail hearing is expected to be scheduled next week.

Separately, the duo faced several additional pre-trial cases, including one in which they were arrested outside Islamabad’s Serena Hotel. Post-arrest bail applications in those cases have already been approved.

The post-trial conviction stems from a case filed by the NCCIA over tweets that authorities said were supportive of banned organizations. Some posts, dated between 2021 and 2025, allegedly accused Pakistan’s armed forces of failing to curb militancy, fostering terrorism and committing enforced disappearances in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.

Mazari, the daughter of former human rights minister Shireen Mazari, is known for her vocal criticism of Pakistan’s military and advocacy on behalf of victims of enforced disappearances. Authorities say the tweets referenced militant groups including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA).

Rights groups have criticized Pakistan’s cybercrime laws, warning that they are increasingly used to stifle dissent and conflate legitimate free expression with anti-state activity.