The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday ordered to remove YouTuber Rajab Butt’s name from the Passport Control List (PCL), granting him travel relief and disposing of the petition.
As per details, Justice Azam Khan issued a six-page written judgment after announcing the reserved verdict.
During the course of proceedings, Butt’s lawyer Barrister Ahmed Khokhar told the court that the National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency (NCCIA) had placed Butt’s name on the PCL, over which the deputy attorney general said that the agency had no objection to its removal.
The court then ruled that keeping his name on the list was unlawful, unnecessary, and a violation of his fundamental rights.
It also noted that after Rajab Butt had appeared before the NCCIA, no legal justification remained to restrict his travel.
The NCCIA booked Butt for allegedly promoting illegal online gambling applications including Binomo, 1xBet, Bet365 and B9 Game through his YouTube, TikTok and Instagram accounts.
An FIR against him alleged that these platforms defrauded users of their money and that Butt acted as a brand ambassador for Binomo, promoting unlicensed apps to his audience.
Earlier, a sessions court in Lahore also extended his interim bail, along with co-accused Nadeem Mubarak, until April 28 after the NCCIA’s investigation officer and prosecutor both failed to appear at the hearing.
