PEMRA issues show-cause notice to Bol News for airing Amir Liaquat show

The media watchdog had banned the anchor from appearing on any TV show over hate speech

The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) issued on Friday a show cause notice to Bol News for defying the media regulator’s orders of not airing anchorperson Aamir Liaquat Hussain’s programme ‘Aisay Nahi Chalay Ga’.

پیمرا حکم کی خلاف ورزی پر بول نیوز کو اظہارِ وجوہ کا نوٹس جاری pic.twitter.com/lGxVrSuKB4

— Report PEMRA (@reportpemra) January 27, 2017

“Aamir Liaquat not only hosted the said programme but also appeared in a promo on the TV screen the same day orders were issued and conveyed to the Bol News management,” said a statement.

The media watchdog had banned Aamir from appearing on any TV show for "preaching hate".

“Aamir Liaquat is prohibited from delivering, on all other channels, any hate speech, declaring anyone as ‘kaafir’ or ‘ghaddar’, as under the Constitution of Pakistan, it is the exclusive jurisdiction of parliament or the honourable Superior Judiciary,” Pemra had said.

The notice sought a reply from the channel's management within 7 days failing which, could result in "imposition of fine, suspension/revocation of license and legal proceedings under the Pemra ordinance 2002 as amended by the Pemra (Amendment) Act-2007”.



Meanwhile, Rawalpindi police had registered an FIR against Aamir and the top management of Bol News.

The FIR, registered on complaint of activist Jibran Nasir, charged Amir, Bol CEO Shoaib Sheikh, Senior Executive Vice-President Amir Zia, Bureau Chief Faysal Aziz Khan and various others with “criminal intimidation, insult with intent to provoke breach of peace, acts of terrorism, inciting hatred, and creating civil commotion” under the Pakistan Penal Code and the Anti-Terrorism Act.