PTI Does Not Claim Ownership of Founder’s X Account, States Chairman Barrister Gohar; Islamabad High Court Grants Time to Submit Written Reply and Adjourns Hearing to November 23
ISLAMABAD: The chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Barrister Gohar Ali Khan has officially denied that the party founded by him is behind the social media X (formerly Twitter) account, saying that it is not a party managed account and the party will not claim responsibility for it.
The development took place at the Islamabad High Court on a hearing of a petition that has been filed to block or close the X account of the jailed former PM. The proceedings were initiated by a petition filed by Ghulam Murtaza before Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir.
The Islamabad High Court hearing was notable for several key developments.Several important points emerged during the Islamabad High Court hearing.
Barrister Gohar was appearing before the court on his own, with the founder’s legal team, Khalid Yousuf Chaudhry and Shamsa Kiani, and officials from the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA). In the course of the arguments Gohar argued that the situation has changed and it had been clearly established that the PTI does not own the account.
Court Remarks and Adjournment: Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir pointed out that Barrister Gohar had not been personally summoned to appear before the court, and that he could be represented by a written statement; but the court chose to grant the defense the time to file a statement. The bench instructed the respondents to file formal written reply and adjourn the hearing till November 23.
Legal context: The lawsuit is over the content and the activities that have taken place on the social media pages of the jailed leader and what has been written there; the regulatory authorities and petitioners have been pressing for some restrictions and the party leaders who have kept themselves at a distance from the day-to-day affairs of the platform.