ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - Almost a week after fiery verbal exchange with a police warden, the Islamabad police on Monday arrested human rights lawyer Imaan Hazir Mazari and her husband on the charges of "impeding performance of official duties".
According to police, a case was registered against Mazari and her husband Hadi Ali by Aabpara police station for removing barriers which were placed for the security of visiting England cricket team.
Mazari had fiery exchange of words with traffic warden last week when she attempted to remove the barricades from the route leading to the Pindi Cricket Stadium.
Besides, her husband was also nominated in the case.
Her mother Shireen Shireen said in a post on X" “Imaan Mazari has been arrested this morning. State fascism in full swing.”
She wrote that the Islamabad police had on Friday “swung a steel barrier deliberately into her, assaulting her”, referring to a purported video being shared on X.
Shireen, a former human rights minister, alleged that the police action had “injured” her daughter.
In August last year, she was re-arrested as she left the Adiala jail after obtaining bail in a case containing threat, incitement and sedition charges.
Mazari was arrested from outside the prison in a case registered with the Barakahu Police Station. She had been accused of levelling allegations against sensitive organisations.
She was released from jail on Sept 2, 2023 after an Islamabad anti-terrorism court granted her post-arrest bail.
Condemnation
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) condemned the arrest of two human rights lawyers on "vague charges of creating a security risk."
In a statement on X, HRCP described the lawyers as "committed, well-respected human rights defenders," adding that their arbitrary arrest reflects the increasingly restricted space for activists in Pakistan.
The HRCP called for the lawyers' immediate and unconditional release and urged the dismissal of all charges against them.