PHC directs Pemra to ensure ban on airing shocking footages by news channels

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday directed the Pakistan Electronic Regulatory Authority (Pemra) to regulate and ensure that television news channels do not air shocking footages of bomb blasts or natural disasters’ victims.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Musarrat Hilali ordered the Pemra to make regulations for television news channels and ensure that no news channel airs the shocking footage of victims of bomb blasts or natural disasters.

The court also asked the news channels to start censoring footages and photos of the blasts victims on their own to avoid shocking news and panic for public.

The bench directed the hospitals directors of the province to ensure the persons injured in the blasts or disasters faced no inconvenience during visits of government functionaries, VIPs and political leaders.

The court passed these directions in a writ petition filed by senior lawyer Muhammad Khurshid Khan. He had sought a ban on the VIPs movement in the hospitals after the bomb blasts and media from showing heartbreaking footages and photos of the victims that created tension and panic.

During the course of hearing, the petitioner submitted that both the media coverage and VIPs visits to the hospitals after the blast created more panic and halted emergency treatment to the blasts victims due to which serious patients could die.

He argued that traffic problems were created as well due to VIPs movement to hospitals after the blasts or in disasters and patients could die due to traffic jams before reaching the hospitals.

The petitioner contended that before shifting the blast victims, media teams rushed to the hospitals for coverage, which impeded treatment of the serious patients as the media persons even entered the Accident and Emergency Departments of the hospitals for taking footages and photos. He complained of heartbreaking scenes airing on the news channels.

The lawyer prayed to the bench to ban the VIPs visits and media coverage in the Accident and Emergency Departments and showing of the shocking footages and photos of the blasts victims to the public.

Additional Advocate General Qaiser Ali Shah, representing the provincial government, opposed the ban on VIPs visits to the hospitals after the blasts. He submitted that the VIPs and government functionaries visits were for ensuring quick and quality free treatment to the victims.

Justice Qaiser Rashid remarked that the VIPs visits created hurdles in treatment of the blasts victims as doctors on duty also remained busy with them rather focusing on the treatment.