Journalist Farhan Mallick arrested by FIA

Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) reportedly arrested Farhan Mallick, the founder of digital media platform Raftar.com, on Thursday evening in Karachi.

According to a statement from Raftar’s YouTube channel, FIA officials raided the company’s office without prior notice, harassed the team, and later summoned Mallick for a hearing at 1 PM on Friday. Despite complying with the summons and waiting for hours, Mallick was arrested at 6 PM without any explanation. “This act threatens press freedom and independent journalism. Raftar demands clarity on Mr. Mallick’s arrest and urges protection for journalists against unjust harassment,” the statement read.

Previous FIA Actions Against Mallick

This is not the first time Farhan Mallick has faced action from the FIA:

• December 2024 – Mallick was removed from a Dubai-bound flight and detained for 5.5 hours at Karachi airport’s immigration office.
• November 2024 – The FIA Cyber Crime Cell accused Raftar and Siyasat.pk of running an “anti-state campaign” on social media. Both Farhan Mallick and Siyasat.pk’s owner, Adeel Habib, were summoned for questioning on November 20 and warned that non-attendance would imply guilt.