ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani high court on Thursday directed the country’s media regulator to restore a private news channel’s transmission suspended three weeks ago for airing controversial remarks by a politician.
ARY News was taken off air in several cities of Pakistan on August 8 after former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s top aide, Dr. Shahbaz Gill, said military personnel should not follow the commands of their top officials if they were “against the sentiments of the masses.” Pakistan’s media regulator said Gill’s comments amounted to inciting mutiny within the army.
A couple of days later, Pakistan’s interior ministry cancelled the private news channel’s no-objection certificate on the basis of “adverse reports from agencies.” The move drew widespread condemnation from journalists and civil rights activists.
On August 11, the Sindh High Court (SHC) ordered Pakistan’s media regulator to immediately restore the channel’s transmission. Despite the court’s orders, ARY News has said the channel’s transmission has not been restored.
On Thursday, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) heard a petition filed by ARY News employees against the “arbitrary and illegal” suspension of the channel’s transmissions. It also cited SHC’s earlier directives to PEMRA in which it ordered the media regulator to restore ARY’s transmissions.
“The Chairman Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority is directed to nominate a senior official to appear before the Court and explain why the transmissions of ARY channel are not being restored,” the Islamabad High Court (IHC) stated in an order.
“In case no order has been passed by a competent authority, then the Authority (chairman PEMRA) shall forthwith restore the transmission,” it added.