Petitions Filed Against Pemra Ban Latest News on Media Regulations

Petitions Filed Against Pemra Ban Latest News on Media Regulations

This is the fourth petition filed in the high courts against the Pemra ban order.

The petitions mentioned as respondents the Pemra chairman and director general, the federal government through the secretaries for interior and law and parliamentary affairs.

The petitions called for the Pemra notification to be suspended, set aside, and declared illegal.

According to a notification issued by the ele­ctronic media regulator on Tuesday, all news channels have been barred from airing material about ‘ongoing court cases’ until a final verdict is announced.

The media regulatory authority imposed a ban on news regarding subjudice cases and directed the channels to only air information that is in the public interest.

PEMRA also directed the media outlets to avoid expressing their ‘opinions on subjudice cases’. It also warned against discussing ongoing court cases in TV programs in a way that could ‘influence’ investigations or the trial.

The regulatory body has emphasized that only information that is deemed necessary for the public will be allowed to be disseminated through media channels.