After an Opposition leader made a contentious remark against the military during a broadcast on Tuesday, one of the nation’s biggest television networks was taken off the air, one of its senior executives was detained, and others were charged with sedition, according to AFP.
Additionally detained and charged with sedition is the opposition leader. After the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority on Tuesday issued a show cause notice alleging that “hateful, seditious, and harmful content on your channel raises severe doubts about your mala fide intent,” the ARY News television channel was shut down.
ARY News in a statement said: “Police officers, along with plain-clothed personnel, forcibly entered the house of Ammad Yousaf. The raiding team diverted the CCTV cameras of Yousaf’s house, and jumped into the house from the top of the main entrance.”
The channel had previously received a notice from the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) stating that it had been deactivated “for airing objectionable, hateful, seditious, based on absolute disinformation with a clear and present threat to national security by instigating rebellion within the armed forces with malafide intent to cause a rift between the government and forces” PEMRA has now requested the channel’s CEO show up for an in-person hearing on August 10.
