Playing favourites

The legacy of former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry’s Supreme Court was tainted with controversy on his last day when the court administration only allowed a particular media group to exclusively cover the full-court proceedings. Such blatant preference of one private media house is unheard of and uncalled for.

Cameras and filming are not allowed in court to begin with. However, if proceedings and other closed-door events have to be recorded for reporting and broadcast, it is usually the state-run Pakistan Television that is given such exclusive rights. Such a practice ensures impartiality. If the idea was to give full coverage all private channels should have been allowed in.



But none of these measures were pursued — or even thought of. The court administration chose to palpably play favourites. Incidentally, the same group ran a laudatory campaign for the outgoing top judge a day before his retirement.

Interestingly enough, when the chief of Pakistan Electronic Regulatory Authority (Pemra) admitted, according to reports, in an evening talk show on December 11 that a fifth licence was granted to the same media group on the Supreme Court’s orders. Pemra rules 2009 clearly states that a maximum number of four licences can be issued to one group. But the Pemra chief divulged that the additional licence was given because a Supreme Court bench led by Justice (retd) Chaudhry told the regulatory body to do so.

Giving such favours to one particular media group casts doubt on the functioning of the Supreme Court administration. The same media that played an indispensable role in the Lawyer’s Movement and Justice (retd) Chaudhry’s reinstatement in 2009 doesn’t quite seem pleased. The new chief justice, Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, has taken suo-motu notice of this controversy. We hope this reveals what actually happened and deters such partiality in the future. The country’s apex court is looked up to by all Pakistanis as an institution whose constitutional responsibility is to uphold the principle of neutrality and impartiality and it must be seen to be fulfilling that task without fear or favour.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 13^th, 2013.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.