Defamation Case: Sindh High Court fines Geo TV
Court orderes channel to deposit a fine of Rs5,000 in the Clinic Fund of the court.
KARACHI:
Sindh High Court has imposed a fine of Rs5,000 on Geo TV for asking the court to suspend the hearing of a case against it. A single bench of SHC heard the application filed by the TV channel. The civil case application pleaded that anchorperson for another channel Mubashar Luqman and Ali Azmat of Junoon group have carried out the character assassination of Geo anchorperson Najam Sethi. Barrister Waleed Khanzada who represented the complainant said that according to the law, the case of defamation can be filed by the person claiming to be the victim himself. He said the application has been filed by the channel and not the victim, therefore, the application does not qualify for hearing. He appealed that the application be rejected. Once again, the complainant appealed the hearing be postponed. The court expressed resentment on this and ordered the channel to deposit a fine of Rs5,000 in the Clinic Fund of the court.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 11th, 2014.
Sindh High Court has imposed a fine of Rs5,000 on Geo TV for asking the court to suspend the hearing of a case against it. A single bench of SHC heard the application filed by the TV channel. The civil case application pleaded that anchorperson for another channel Mubashar Luqman and Ali Azmat of Junoon group have carried out the character assassination of Geo anchorperson Najam Sethi. Barrister Waleed Khanzada who represented the complainant said that according to the law, the case of defamation can be filed by the person claiming to be the victim himself. He said the application has been filed by the channel and not the victim, therefore, the application does not qualify for hearing. He appealed that the application be rejected. Once again, the complainant appealed the hearing be postponed. The court expressed resentment on this and ordered the channel to deposit a fine of Rs5,000 in the Clinic Fund of the court.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 11th, 2014.