The Lahore High Court Tuesday ordered to restore the licence of the 24NewsHD TV.
Hearing the petition submitted by the City News Network, Justice Sajid Mahmood Sethi of Lahore High Court suspended the illegal order of Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) to suspend the licence of the 24News.
The LHC also ordered immediate restoration of the transmission of the news channel.
The court rejected the Pemra’ request to not issue the stay order in favour of the channel and has sought a reply from the federal government, Pemra and other stakeholders till tomorrow (Wednesday).
A large number of journalists and lawyers were present at the court during the hearing.
Earlier, another dark day in Pakistan’s history was witnessed on Monday as Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) bulldozing all norms of upholding the freedom of media shut down the 24NewsHD TV channel for showing the mirror to the government and some observers even declared the government's step as "economic murder" of about 1,000 families of newsmen.
On Monday, the government resorted to strong-hand tactics on Monday as journalists staging peaceful protests against the illegal closure of 24NewsHD TV channel were fired upon and lathi-charged in different cities of the country.
Shots were fired on the protesting newsmen outside the office of Pemra in Islamabad as the journalists were staging a peaceful demonstration to record their protests. First, the Pemra’s security guards scuffled with the journalists and then opened fire on them. The peaceful journalists were then lathi-charged in presence of the Islamabad deputy commissioner and were also pelted with stones.
At Thokar Niaz Baig in Lahore, some miscreants attacked the protesting camp of journalists causing head injury to one of the newsmen. The police present at the scene did neither intervene nor took any action against the stone-throwing attackers.
The government high-handedness against the peaceful journalists was widely condemned in the country and leaders of all the political parties strongly condemned the attack on the journalists and urged the government to restore the licence of the 24News immediately.