PEMRA bans Geo Entertainment and ARY News

PEMRA bans Geo Entertainment and ARY News

MUMBAI: A few days after the licence of Pakistan’s leading news broadcaster Geo News was suspended for a fortnight alleging it had defamed the Army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has done the same for two other channels.

 

Another Geo channel, Geo Entertainment and news channel ARY News have also been asked to stop broadcasting for 30 and 15 days respectively and cough up a fine of Rs 1 crore for airing unsuitable content.

 

Geo Entertainment’s licence was suspended as PEMRA accused it of insulting the viewers’ religious sentiments by playing a religious song at the mock wedding of controversial Pakistani actress Veena Malik.

 

ARY News on the other hand was hauled up for airing shows that were anti-judiciary and disrespectful to the higher courts. The channel’s anchor Mubashir Lucman and his talk show Khara Sach have also been banned. In return the channel has stated in one of its programmes that it will challenge the ban in the court.