Lahore High Court sends file to chief justice for reassignment after judge recuses himself
LAHORE — A Lahore High Court (LHC) judge on Tuesday recused himself from hearing the bail plea of popular YouTuber Saad-ur-Rehman, better known by his online moniker Ducky Bhai, in a case linked to the alleged promotion of illegal online gambling applications.
Justice Farooq Haider, who was scheduled to hear the matter, stepped down from the case without citing specific reasons, directing that the case file be sent to the Chief Justice of the LHC for reassignment to another bench.
During the brief proceedings, an officer from the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) presented detailed records related to the ongoing investigation.
The bail petition, filed by Ducky Bhai through his counsel Advocate Imran Chadhar, names the NCCIA and other relevant authorities as respondents.
In his plea, the YouTuber claimed that he was arrested at the airport while preparing to travel abroad, despite not receiving any prior notice or summons for questioning. His lawyer argued that Ducky Bhai had already spent ten days in NCCIA custody under physical remand and urged the court to release him on bail.
Ducky Bhai faces accusations of promoting gambling apps through his social media platforms — a charge he denies.
The case had earlier been heard by a Lahore district court, which extended his judicial remand by 14 days on November 3 at the request of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), allowing investigators additional time to complete their inquiry.
Following Justice Haider’s recusal, the Lahore High Court is expected to set a new hearing date once the case is assigned to another bench.
