PAEC rebuts news item

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) has termed a news story published in The News on Tuesday by Umar Cheema, titled: “Killer injections: SC takes up case today to rectify omissions” as defamatory and carrying a libellous headline.

The spokesperson for the PAEC said the headline of the news story was extremely libelous - willfully carved out to damage the repute of the organisation and affect the proceedings of the court.

“It is true that the honourable bench of the apex court has taken up the review petition.Prophesying diagnosis tools as ‘killer injections’ by the reporter and claiming that case has been taken up by the apex SC of Pakistan ‘to rectify omissions’ makes a perfect combination of ‘tilted headline’ which amounts to challenge sagacity of learned judges of the apex court,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

He said the case is ‘sub judice’ which means ‘under judicial consideration and therefore prohibited from public discussion elsewhere’. However, he said, it is regretted that despite issuance of the categorical denial by PAEC in response to a news story published on Monday, the reporter has not only resorted to publishing the same story but has also gone a step farther by printing full petition in the newspaper, serving the vested interest of the petitioner viz. spreading unnecessary panic among the patients suffering from cancer. “This trend of victimising the proponents through ‘media trial’, on one hand violates all journalistic principles and on the other hand amounts to depriving them of the constitutional right to fair trial,” he said.

The spokesperson said the PAEC, being one of the most responsible organisations of the country, is open to any investigation as it has no skeletons in the cupboard. Therefore, he said, it is not appropriate to initiate any public debate on the case until it is settled by the esteemed Supreme Court of Pakistan.