LHC Moved Against Ban On Court Reporting

It marks the fourth petition submitted to the high courts contesting the Pemra ban.

A new petition has been filed in the Lahore High Court challenging the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority’s (PEMRA) notification restricting TV channels from covering court proceedings.

This marks the fourth petition submitted to high courts contesting the PEMRA ban.

The petitions name as respondents the PEMRA chairman and director general, and the Federal government through the secretaries for interior and law and parliamentary affairs.

The petitions seek the suspension, nullification, and declaration of the PEMRA notification as illegal.

According to the notice issued by the media regulator on Tuesday, all news channels are prohibited from broadcasting material about ‘ongoing court cases’ until a final verdict is reached.

PEMRA banned news coverage regarding sub judice cases, directing channels to only broadcast information that serves the public interest.

Additionally, the media regulator instructed outlets to refrain from expressing ‘opinions on sub judice cases’ and warned against discussing ongoing court cases in a manner that could ‘influence’ investigations or the trial.

The regulatory authority stressed that only information deemed necessary for the public will be allowed to be broadcast through media channels.