JournalismPakistan.com
January 15, 2023

ISLAMABAD–The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested BOL News journalist Shahid Aslam in Lahore on Saturday for his alleged role in leaking the personal tax data of former army chief General (Retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa.

The arrest came after investigative news website FactFocus published a report in November accusing the army chief and his family of amassing assets worth Rs12.7 billion over the past six years, citing tax records and wealth statements of the Bajwa family to corroborate its claims.

Aslam was presented before a local court in Islamabad, where his lawyer argued that there was no proof that Aslam received any [leaked] information and had then passed it on to someone else. The court approved a two-day physical remand of the journalist.

After being escorted out of court, Aslam claimed to be a professional journalist with multiple sources. According to him, “They are asking me for passwords. I won’t give the passwords.”

The journalist community has condemned the act as an attack on the freedom of expression and rights.