PESHAWAR: Peshawar Excessive Courtroom has declared unlawful interviewing of suspected criminals in police’s custody by journalists and social media activists.
A bench consisting of Justice Waqar Ahmad and Justice Fazal Subhan accepted a petition filed by a lawyer, Jabir Khan, who sought orders for Pakistan Digital Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) to instantly ban telecast of media interviews of crime suspects throughout their investigation.
The bench pronounced a brief order and detailed judgement could be launched later. The petitioner had requested the court docket to direct federal and provincial governments to behave towards media shops, tv channels, Fb account holders and YouTubers telecasting and importing the interviews of suspected outlaws throughout investigation and trial.
He had additionally sought orders for police to dam the entry of journalists, TV reporters, Vloggers, YouTubers and Fb activists to police stations and prisons for interviewing suspects.
Bench points quick order in petition filed by lawyer
In February this yr, a bench had issued a keep order and stopped interviewing of crime suspects throughout custody. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police of their feedback had requested the court docket to reject the petitioner’s plea, stating that it was not maintainable.
That they had said that there was no prohibition in any regulation to cease interviews of suspects in custody.
Senior lawyer Ziaur Rehman Tajik appeared for the petitioner and stated that such interviews ought to be declared unconstitutional and towards elementary rights and the dignity of man in addition to the honest trial promised in Articles 10-A and 14 of the Structure.
He identified that part 20 of Pemra Ordinance offered {that a} licence-holder ought to make sure that all programmes and commercials didn’t include or encourage violence, terrorism, racial, ethnic or non secular discrimination, sectarianism, materials offensive to generally accepted requirements of decency, and so forth.
Rebutting the police perspective {that a} grievance might be filed underneath Pemra Ordinance on the problem, the counsel said that due to having no licence with any social media activist, YouTubers, Fb activists and Vloggers, they didn’t come throughout the ambit of Pemra.
He contended that it had turn into a observe of journalists and members of media shops, YouTube channels and Vlogs that they interviewed suspected outlaws throughout investigation quickly after their arrest in utter violation of Article 14 of the Structure, which assured the dignity of man.
Mr Tajik stated that it was a violation of the Structure by a number of digital and social media shops to telecast or add interviews of suspected criminals on-line.
“Freedom of speech, press and expression is the basic proper of each citizen as offered by Article 19 of the Structure, however that proper can be topic to affordable restriction imposed by the regulation and that the integrity, decency and ethical rights of an accused shouldn’t be violated,” he stated.
The lawyer contended that such practices affected trials of the accused. He argued that interviewing a suspected prison in custody was not solely towards the legal guidelines of defamation and contempt of court docket however it additionally amounted to influencing the free and honest trial of a person and neutral investigation, a violation of Article 10-A of the Structure.
Mr Tajik stated that TV channels, YouTubers and Vloggers interviewed suspected criminals and tried to show them responsible even earlier than the conclusion of their trials by courts.
The counsel stated that as Pemra and police division had not been performing their respective duties in accordance with the regulation, media interviews of accused in custody had been on the rise.
Printed in Daybreak, Could twenty sixth, 2024