The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday ordered the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to ‘regulate’ the media in the light of the Supreme Court (SC) order and disposed of the petition filed by former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan against ban on the live coverage of his speeches, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Taking notice of some contents of former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s speech at the party’s rally in Faisalabad yesterday (Sunday, September 4, 2022), Chief Justice (CJ) of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Justice Athar Minallah on Monday asked whether political leaders could be so selfish that they were ready to put everything at stake merely for the sake of power.
During the hearing of the petition filed against ban on the live coverage of PTI chairman’s speeches, Justice Minallah asked his counsel, “Have you heard the remarks your client had made at a public gathering yesterday?”
The CJ went on to say that personnel of the country’s armed forces laid down their lives for the defence of the country. “When somebody violates a law or does something unconstitutional, everybody condemns it,” he said, adding, “You should hold yourself accountable as well and tell what you are up to.”
“Do you always want to have your own way, and want that nobody ‘regulates’ you? Justice Minallah asked angrily.
If that was the case, he added, then you should not expect the courts to give you relief.
IHC CJ was of the view that everybody was patriotic, and nobody had the right to label somebody unpatriotic or a traitor.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) had on Monday (August 29, 2022) suspended the order of PEMRA to ban the live telecast of former premier Imran Khan’s speeches.
IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah also issued a notice to PEMRA and the attorney general.
“In the prima facie, PEMRA exceeded the scope of its authority by banning the live broadcast of Imran Khan’s speeches,” IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah said.
“In the current circumstances, there is no proper reason to ban Imran Khan’s speeches,” he added.
Earlier, the IHC chief justice heard a contempt case against Imran Khan for hurling threats at Additional Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhary.
PEMRA submitted the DVD and transcript of Imran Khan’s August 20 speech at F-9 Park, Islamabad.
PEMRA DG Monitoring Ashfaq Ahmed Jamani submitted the record on the court order.
The IHC had issued a notice on August 23 last and sought the record from PEMRA.
Reporter: Ihtesham Kiani