Pakistan has faced criticism over press freedom concerns following the arrest of journalist Sohrab Barkat, whose coverage of unrest in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) allegedly led to action against him under cybercrime laws. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Barkat was taken into custody from his Islamabad home on June 5 after sharing reports on his YouTube channel about recent protests in the region.

CPJ reports that authorities seized his mobile phone and car keys after the arrest, and a day later the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) filed a First Information Report (FIR) against him on June 6. The FIR accuses him of violating Pakistan’s Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), which penalizes the spread of “false” or “misleading” information with possible prison terms of up to three years. The complaint refers specifically to a June 5 video in which Barkat discussed the political situation in PoJK, with officials alleging he was amplifying the narrative of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), a protest group currently under state scrutiny.

Barkat was later remanded into custody by a local court for three days. CPJ’s Afghanistan-Pakistan representative Waliullah Rahmani has called for his immediate release, the return of his confiscated belongings, and an end to what he described as the misuse of broad misinformation and security-related laws against journalists.

His arrest comes amid rising tensions in PoJK, where authorities have recently banned the JAAC under anti-terror laws following protests against reserved legislative seats for refugees who migrated from India decades ago. The demonstrations reportedly escalated into unrest, leading to a security crackdown in which at least 15 people were killed, several arrests were made, and internet access was disrupted across the region. CPJ also noted that Barkat had previously been held for nearly 100 days between November 2025 and March 2026 without formal charges.