Unnecessary fee: Federal govt’s comments sought in plea against PTV fee

LAHORE:

Lahore High Court on Friday gave the federal government till May 31 to respond to a petition against a monthly TV fee charged through electricity bills. The petition also sought enforcement of a law against indecent advertisements and entertainment programmes aired on private channels.

Petitioner Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed, the leader of the opposition in the Punjab Assembly, had submitted that the viewership of the state-run channel had declined overtime but every electricity consumer was being forced to pay the fee. He said this was in violation of the Constitution. Mehmood said that the PEMRA had failed to perform its statutory obligation by not enforcing the Indecent Advertisement Prohibition Act of 1963.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 16^th, 2016.