ARY chief, anchors booked; senior official held for 'sedition'.

KARACHI/LAHORE/ISLAMAABAD -- Police on Wednesday registered a sedition case against the CEO of ARY News and others associated with it, and arrested the channel's head of news and current affairs, Ammad Yousaf.

The FIR was registered at the Memon Goth police station on behalf of the state by a police officer over a controversial interview by PTI leader Dr Shahbaz Gill broadcast on the channel on Aug 8.

Meanwhile, journalist and rights bodies condemned the ban on the channel and Mr Yousaf's arrest. The country's media bodies also moved court against the arrest and suspension of the channel's transmission.

A senior police officer who wished not to be named said Mr Yousaf, who is also the senior executive vice president of ARY News, was likely to be presented before a Karachi court on Thursday (today). ARY Controller News Siraj Ahmed told Dawn two police mobiles and a Vigo double cabin vehicle reached Mr Yousaf's residence in DHA at around 2:30am on Wednesday, entered by scaling the walls and detained him.

Meanwhile, the channel on its website claimed Mr Yousaf was picked up 'without a warrant from his residence'. 'Police officers along with plain-clothed persons forcibly entered the house of Ammad Yousaf. The raiding team diverted the CCTV cameras of Yousaf's house, and jumped into the house from the top of the main entrance. It also took away the... DVR of the CCTV cameras installed in the house,' it added.

The first information report (FIR) against ARY Digital Network President and CEO Salman Iqbal, Yousaf, anchorpersons Arshad Sharif and Khawar Ghumman and a producer was registered under sections 120, 124-A, 131, 153, 153-A, 505, 506, 121, 109 and 34 of the PPC.

The complainant, Memon Goth SHO Ateequr Rehman, said on Aug 8, he saw a viral clip on social media featuring an ARY News show wherein PTI's Dr Gill had made 'hateful remarks' against the army. Anchor Sharif and the channel's Islamabad Bureau Chief Ghumman participated in the show as analysts.

He claimed that by expressing such views, PTI and ARY News were creating a 'divide' between sections of armed forces, sowing hatred and rebellion in the army and also threatening government officers against following the government's directives.

'This is a premeditated and an organised conspiracy' perpetrated 'in collusion with the channel's produAcAAer, director and CEO, the FIR added.

On the other hand, soon after the authorities came down hard on ARY News, it softened its aggressive stanAAce...

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