IHC orders Pemra: Restore slot Geo had before editor-in-chief’s arrest

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday directed the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) to restore the Geo News to its original placement on TV channel, ordering a few days after the media regulatory authority had illegally shut down the channel's broadcast and relegated it to lower numbers.

The court ruled that the Pemra will ensure that complaints of it meddling in TV channels broadcast are resolved. "The relevant officer needs to satisfy the court that the Pemra is fulfilling its constitutional responsibility," stated the court. Earlier, the Islamabad High Court issued notices to the Pemra and Special Assistant to PM on Information and Broadcasting Firdous Ashiq Awan in a case related to the closure and relegation of the Geo News to lower placements on TV channel ordering.

Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Athar Minallah heard the petition submitted through Barrister Jahangir Jadoon by Raja Ahsan Mahmood Satti. Jadoon presented arguments, stating that the media is one of the fundamental pillars of the society and that the matter pertains to freedom of expression and basic rights. He said if the government is irked by any action of the media, the Pemra platform is there to raise the issue.

In his arguments, the lawyer noted that the Geo News has faced similar issues in the past, adding that it was the public’s prerogative to view the TV channel of their choice. He presented a few references from earlier rulings of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in relation to the subject.

The high court, following the arguments, issued notices to those nominated in the petition, including the secretary information technology, SAPM Awan and Pemra Chairman Saleem Baig. The court sought a response from the persons nominated in the case against the allegations. The court also asked the Pemra chairman to nominate a person from his side, who can appear before it on the next hearing.

The IHC adjourned the hearing until March 24.

Meanwhile, the Lahore High Court (LHC) has directed federal and Punjab governments to submit a comprehensive report regarding the mechanism and guidelines they are adhering to while distributing government advertisements.

Justice Asim Hafeez was hearing a petition moved by the Independent Newspapers Corporation through advocate Bahzad Haider, challenging discriminatory distributions of government advertisements. The court sought the record of distribution of government advertisements during the last 10 years.

The counsel argued that the petitioner is running the largest media houses and its Urdu language newspaper “Daily Jang” is most circulated paper and its channel “Geo News” is also the most popular among the masses. He said the petitioner owned one of the leading English language newspaper “The News International”. He contended that the federal government has been exercising its discretion in an unfair manner while distributing government advertisements as some conspicuous newspapers and media houses have been given preference.

He said the government started giving fewer advertisements to the Jang/Geo Group from December 2019 as compared to other media houses and stopped it in January 2020. To substantiate his contention, the lawyer pointed out that on February 27, the federal government released advertisements to almost all newspapers and channels but the Jang, Geo and The News International were omitted from the list. The advertisement was relating to remember the day of the Pakistan Air Force supremacy over India last year.

By doing so, the federal government had not only violated the fundamental rights of the petitioner but it was also an attempt to muzzle the independent voices and dissenting opinions. He submitted that depriving the petitioner of claiming its legitimate and due share of government advertisements is conspicuously designed to strangle financially and coerce it out of business.

He said the government released advertisements to create public awareness on certain issues, but a huge number of people were deprived of information by not giving advertisement to the largest media group. He said as per dictum laid down by the Supreme Court of Pakistan, the government being the trustee of the national exchequer should use it fairly for public welfare. He argued that the acts and omission on the part of the federal government were discriminatory and promoting totalitarianism, replicating the ear of “Press in Chain”.

After hearing preliminary arguments, the court sought a report and para-wise comments from both the governments and directed them to apprise it about the mechanism and record of advertisements distributed in last 10 years. The court will resume hearing on May 14.