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LHC suspends Pemra order banning Imran Khan’s speeches

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LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday suspended Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority’s (Pemra) order, banning the broadcast of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairperson Imran Khan’s speeches.

Justice Shams Mehmood Mirza announced the suspension of the order in a verdict he had reserved earlier today. The judge also admitted the PTI chief’s request for the formation of a full bench and sent the case to the LHC chief justice.

The judge after announcing the verdict adjourned the hearing till March 13.

On Sunday, Pemra slapped a ban on the live broadcast of the deposed prime minister after he heaped scorn on state institutions amid drama over his arrest from Zaman Park in the Toshakhana case. Subsequently, Khan filed a petition in the LHC for the annulment of the ban, accusing the regulatory authority of exceeding its constitutional powers by imposing the restriction.

Today, LHC’s Justice Mirza took up the plea for a hearing and inquired about the grounds of the case.

Khan’s lawyer informed the court that an earlier ban imposed by Pemra was also suspended by the Islamabad High Court.

At this, Pemra’s lawyer opposed the argument and argued that the case was in IHC’s jurisdiction and not in the LHC.

“A five-member bench has heard a case of similar nature on Monday,” the lawyer maintained while requesting the court to forward the plea to a larger bench.

At this, the LHC had reserved its verdict. 

LHC seeks security plan for Imran Khan

Meanwhile, the high court also heard a separate plea filed by the PTI chief for security and permission to appear via video link in courts.

The court remarked that the individuals related to the relief sought in the petition were not even a party in the case.

At this, Khan’s lawyer Salman Safdar informed the court that some of the parties had been removed from the petition after the objections were raised on the plea.

He said that the plea had been filed on Monday and fixed for the hearing yesterday after the removal of objections.

At this, Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh remarked that the petition was very confusing.

The court asked the lawyer if they wanted foolproof security for Khan.

“Does a former prime minister get the security,” it asked.

At this, the lawyer responded positively while Justice Sheikh directed him to make corrections in the petition.

“Bring the petition after correction and the court will take it up today,” he added. 

When the hearing reconvened, Khan’s lawyer informed the court that the corrections had been made in the plea.

“There is a law for the provision of security for a former premier,” he maintained.

He told the court that Khan had been given security but it was withdrawn on January 19.

At this, the federal government’s lawyer maintained that the provision of security was a subject of provincial government.

Meanwhile, Justice Sheikh remarked that there was a security issue in this court, however, the petitioner needs to approach a relevant court for permission of appearance via video link.

The court then directed the provincial and federal governments’ lawyers to assist the court after taking directives on provision of security by Monday.

At this, Khan’s lawyer requested the court to provide security to Khan immediately.

However, the court told him to wait till the government lawyers bring the security plan, and issued notices to Punjab inspector general of police and home department.

Elections

Atta Tarar’s triumph over NA-127 in the LHC is contested

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The victory of Attaullah Tarar, the Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting and leader of the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) from Lahore’s NA-127 constituency in the general elections on February 8 has been contested in the Lahore High Court (LHC).

Samiullah Khan’s victory from PP-145 has also been contested. The petitions will be heard by Election Tribunal Judge Sultan Tanveer. The petitions have included the Pakistani Election Commission (ECP) and other parties as parties.

In the meantime, Attaullah Tarar stated during a discussion with Miss Zoe Ware, the Political Counselor of the British High Commission, that fake news, misinformation, and disinformation were global issues that needed to be managed.

According to the minister, fake news is the largest issue on social media, and the government is working to address it.

The conference covered a wide range of topics, including the two nations’ relationship and how to foster media collaboration. Collaboration in the drama and cinema industries was also covered.

According to Attaullah Tarar, social media verification should be adopted by journalists, and a global code of conduct for social media usage should be created.

Miss Zoe Ware thanked Attaullah Tarar on taking over as Minister of Information and Broadcasting and the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) on establishing the cabinet.

She was given the assurance that the UK diplomat will work with her to promote bilateral ties between Pakistan and the UK.

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Pakistan

US commitment to resolving Pakistan’s energy crisis is prioritized

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According to State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, Pakistan was assisted by the United States in producing an extra 4,000 megawatts of sustainable energy.

According to him, these kinds of initiatives have given Pakistan more capacity to produce energy, allowing it to power millions of people.

The spokesman restated that both nations will cooperate through the green alliance to address the environmental issues.

At a news briefing, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller stated, “Earlier, the United States advised Pakistan to halt the Pak-Iran Gas Pipeline Project, as engaging in business with Iran poses the risk of encountering U.S. sanctions.”

“We always advise everyone that doing business with Iran carries the risk of encountering our sanctions, and we would advise everyone to consider that very carefully,” he continued. “I’m not going to preview any potential sanctions.”

He said, “We do not support this pipeline going forward, as the Assistant Secretary made clear last week.”

The Pakistan-Iran pipeline project was approved for completion a few months ago by the caretaker administration in Pakistan. But after this permission, Pakistan received an official statement from the US expressing its worries. Pakistan again put a stop to the project’s execution when the United States expressed concerns.

Miller said, “We condemn the attack on a convoy of PRC engineers in Pakistan,” in response to a query. Miller also denounced the terrorist attack on Chinese engineers in Pakistan. We offer our sincere condolences to all impacted by the incident and are extremely saddened by the deaths and injuries incurred.

He declared, “Terrorists have caused enormous suffering to the Pakistani people, and Chinese nationals living in Pakistan have also been the targets of terrorist strikes.” Such acts of terror should not occur in any nation.

In response to a question concerning a letter from Pakistani judges, the spokesperson stated that while he had seen the letter, he had not yet conferred with his colleagues and would not be making any comments.

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Pakistan

Fazlur Rehman says the government led by Shehbaz won’t be able to deliver

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Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the head of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), expressed doubts on Wednesday over the viability of the Shehbaz Sharif administration, stating that he believes the new system will fail if citizens go to the streets.

Fazlur Rehman stated on Wednesday’s “Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath” segment of Geo News that “the parliament will likely be a rubber stamp.” There are simply too many obstacles for this government to handle. In the end, politicians will be held accountable for all of their shortcomings.”

The “crime is committed by someone else and the politicians take responsibility,” he said, calling it bizarre. The leader of JUI-F declared that his organization will demonstrate against the establishments that had turned the elections into a “game.”


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Fazl has previously said that he would abstain from the by-elections for the National Assembly and provincial assembly seats. In addition, he declared that on April 25, following Ramadan, he will start a protest campaign against the purported election manipulation from Balochistan.

“We firmly believe that there will be a rigged general election in 2024. And the factor that changed the outcome would be our aim. We reject the findings that led to the formation of this government,” he declared.

The leader of JUI-F stated that they disagreed with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa election results.

“[Earlier] the issues with the PTI were ideological and not election-related,” he said.

He stated that the party had not yet made the decision to work with the PTI. He did concede, though, that the Imran Khan-led party’s attitude has changed for the better. He remarked that it was a positive attitude and that it would not be a problem if the two parties moved together.

Fazl also revealed that he told Nawaz Sharif, the former prime minister, that he thought of him as a new blue-eyed boy during their meeting.

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