Supreme Court to resume Geo petition hearing

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan will resume hearing over a petition filed by the Independent Media Corporation (IMC) on behalf of Geo Network against the negative propaganda by other TV channels and for resumption of its transmission on cable networks.

On Thursday, a three-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Jawwad S Khawaja and comprising Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Mushir Alam heard the petition.

During the course of hearing Justice Khawaja remarked: “We are very professional and we will deal with it professionally and we do know what our values are, thanks to Allah Almighty,”

He said that everyone should know that they would not let anyone cause harm to the dignity of the Supreme Court.

Justice Jawwad S Khawaja refused to recuse himself from the bench hearing the Geo TV case saying a judge took the decision to disassociate himself in accordance with the Constitution.

He said that it was the conscience of the judge himself which must determine his decision whether to sit on a bench or not.

Justice Khawaja questioned the regulatory body about its presence during propaganda against the judiciary. He asked where was Pemra when propaganda was aired against the judiciary.

Supreme Court to resume Geo petition hearing

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan will resume hearing over a petition filed by the Independent Media Corporation (IMC) on behalf of Geo Network against the negative propaganda by other TV channels and for resumption of its transmission on cable networks.

On Thursday, a three-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Jawwad S Khawaja and comprising Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Mushir Alam heard the petition.

During the course of hearing Justice Khawaja remarked: “We are very professional and we will deal with it professionally and we do know what our values are, thanks to Allah Almighty,”

He said that everyone should know that they would not let anyone cause harm to the dignity of the Supreme Court.

Justice Jawwad S Khawaja refused to recuse himself from the bench hearing the Geo TV case saying a judge took the decision to disassociate himself in accordance with the Constitution.

He said that it was the conscience of the judge himself which must determine his decision whether to sit on a bench or not.

Justice Khawaja questioned the regulatory body about its presence during propaganda against the judiciary. He asked where was Pemra when propaganda was aired against the judiciary.

Parliament is supreme: defence minister

 

ISLAMABAD: Two senior federal ministers, Khawaja Muhammad Asif and Senator Pervaiz Rasheed, on Tuesday strongly defended parliament in the National Assembly, saying that the people of Pakistan had not lost confidence in parliament and they fully supported the democratic system.
During a discussion on a motion on the formation of a committee to investigate the allegations against parliamentarians of not paying taxes, the two strongly objected to the use of the words ‘black sheep’ by Asad Umar of the PTI for those not paying taxes and said that parliament, being the supreme institution, enjoys full support of the public. Speaker Ayaz Sadiq later expunged the words ‘black sheep’ from the proceedings.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the active participation of the people in the 2013 general elections clearly showed that the people had full confidence in the system and wanted democracy to flourish in the country.

He said all institutions come up in the defence of their people, and the parliamentarians should not belittle their own institution. “We should be open for accountability but this should be done under a certain framework, which does not degrade the sanctity of the institution,” he said.

Khawaja Asif said the parliamentarians themselves should not undermine the dignity of the House and its members and words like ‘black sheep’ should not be used by any member. ‘There should also be some principles and rules regarding the verbal war,” he said.

He said parliament was the supreme institution of the country and they had to strengthen it. “Our own colleagues let us down whenever the democratic system is attacked,” he said, adding that through speeches no such impression should be given that parliament was not supreme.

Minister for Information and said the people respected the parliamentarians despite misperceptions created by the undemocratic forces. “The impression that the people have lost confidence in Parliament is wrong and such impression often comes from the undemocratic forces,” he said.

He said the people have rendered great sacrifices for the supremacy of the Constitution and for strengthening democracy. “There is no difference between the people of Pakistan and the members of Parliament,” he added. The minister said the government’s view is the same as reflected in the army chief’s statement.