Criminal Court has scheduled hearings for tomorrow for the Qazf cases against Adhadhu CEO Hussain Fiyaz Moosa and Editor Hassan Mohamed.
Qazf is an Islamic legal term referring to the false accusation of adultery or fornication.
Summons chits sent to Fiyaz and Hassan by the Criminal Court stated that the preliminary hearings in the case will be held at 1pm tomorrow.
The court has decided to hold closed hearings for this case.
The cases were submitted to court by the Prosecutor General's Office on last Sunday. Police also spent a significantly short period of time on the investigation into the case.
The State also sought a gag order from the court, which Criminal Court Judge Muzammil Nasir has granted.
The gag order issued on the media and public by the Criminal Court prohibits
- Circulating the documentary released by Adhadhu
- Referring directly or indirectly to information contained in the documentary
- Mentioning the plaintiff or alleged victim connected to the case
- Publishing documents submitted in the case or information related to the ongoing trial
The order states that violating any of these restrictions could amount to contempt of court.
Two Adhadhu journalists have been summoned to court today alleging they have violated this court order.
Fiyaz and Hassan were both earlier summoned to Police over qazf charges. Both opted to exercise their right to remain silent, stating it is a constitutional right to protect sources.
Criminal Court had issued an order on Adhadhu even during the investigative stage. They ordered Adhadhu to provide passcodes for the laptops and other equipment seized by police, and to provide access to all of these. However, Adhadhu CEO Fiyaz refused to provide access.
