New Delhi: Punjab CM Maryam Nawaz has a solution for journalists who criticise her — get them arrested.
Pakistani journalist Benazir Shah, editor with Geo Fact-check, took to X on Wednesday, stating that 99 cases were filed under the amended Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016 between January and 16 July this year against journalists and citizens in Pakistan for so-called “anti-state activities”. The majority of these, 63 cases, were registered in Punjab, with many directly accusing citizens of criticising CM Maryam Nawaz.
“While most FIRs under the PECA amendments cite ‘anti-state’ content, some accuse social media users of ‘defamatory’ posts about the UAE PM, foreign dignitaries, and there is even one about Mohsin Naqvi,” Shah wrote in the post.
Pakistan’s big brother moves have acutely been criticised by journalists. In January this year, Pakistan’s parliament passed a bill to amend the controversial PECA law.
The amendments grant the government sweeping powers to regulate social media. Penalties include up to three years in prison and a fine of up to PKR 20 lakh for spreading fake news. The law also prohibits sharing statements from banned organisations or their members, and broadens the definition of social media platforms to include any online information management systems.
Pakistani journalists, digital rights advocates, and civil society have long been waging a war against the PECA law. Originally passed in 2016 to combat cybercrime, it has now become the state’s primary tool to intimidate and criminalise free speech. These concerns have only grown louder with a recent wave of arrests, threats, and abductions targeting journalists.
Meanwhile, citizens were surprised that no one had flagged these numbers.
“63 PECA cases for criticizing Form 47 CM Maryam Nawaz! Shows how childish she is, can’t tolerate any criticzm. Also, why I didn’t see any free press champion call out Maharni’s dictatorial tendencies?” a Pakistani X user, Osama, wrote.
Another person sarcastically pointed out, “How dare people criticize the crown princess”.
‘Growing misuse’
In August 2025, the Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting, chaired by PTI Senator Ali Zafar, expressed alarm over the growing misuse of PECA after a Senate report revealed that a total of 689 FIRs had been registered under the law across the country — including nine against journalists. One journalist has been arrested, while seven others are reportedly outside Pakistan, Dawn reported.
The committee also discussed unpaid salaries and pensions at PTV, the state broadcaster. An ongoing scandal involving the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP), another state-backed news syndicate, involving PKR 1.24 billion in embezzlement, linked to provident funds and employee expenses, was discovered.
Ironically, despite the scale of the APP fraud, no FIR has been filed even ten months after the scandal came to light. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar had then assured the Senate committee that he would personally follow up to ensure accountability.
Meanwhile, media reports, including a scathing editorial in Dawn published last month, have criticised the weaponisation of PECA. The editorial warned that journalists’ fears have been fully realised, citing how 27 YouTube channels were ordered blocked by an Islamabad judge in July under PECA on claims of “fake, misleading and defamatory” content.
The order was later partially suspended when a district court found that the operators had not been given prior notice, violating their constitutional right to due process.
“The state has been using PECA to spread fear and silence critics. The law must continue to be questioned at all forums and from all perspectives,” the Dawn editorial noted.
Also read: An X user has profiled Pakistani journalists—from ‘dumbest’ to ‘clown’ to ‘angry bird’
PECA and its controversial history
PECA’s backstory is tied to the 2014 terrorist attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar, after which then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif launched the National Action Plan. This included tighter control over online speech. The law was later expanded by the PTI government in 2020, and again through a 2022 ordinance, which increased prison terms for defamation. The ordinance was struck down by the Islamabad High Court for being unconstitutional.
(Edited by Aamaan Alam Khan)