By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan dismissed the KP government’s request to stream the NAB amendments case live, citing the possibility that political “point-scoring” could occur from the airing of court hearings in cases involving politicians.
In response to a government appeal from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa asking for live broadcasting of the hearing in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) amendment case, the top court rendered a comprehensive decision on Saturday.
The top court noted, referring to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, that there is a genuine chance that hearings led by political party leaders who are not this court’s advocates could be used for political point-scoring and other point-scoring as well as for matters that do not concern
On May 30, the apex court issued a 4-1 ruling rejecting the plea for live broadcasting, with Justice Athar Minallah disapproving of the majority decision.
Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa led a bigger SC bench consisting of Justices Amin-ud-din Khan, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Minallah, and Hasan Azhar Rizvi, which heard the case.
“This was one of the main factors we took into account when rejecting the application. And as the day went on, our suspicions were validated. In addition to mentioning other instances, the general elections that were held on February 8, 2023, a commission of investigation, and his detention, Mr. Niazi, the founder of the Pakistan Terrorism Institute, addressed this court on May 30, 2024. None of these issues are related to the topic at hand.
The order stated, “This cannot be allowed as it would obstruct the proper administration of justice.”
It went on to say that discussing issues that are not being considered could have an impact on how the public views the situation as well as the rights of those who are not in front of us, including their basic right to a fair trial and due process.
The KP advocate general has not explained “why the sudden interest, or desire, for live-streaming, when his Government did not join the hearings of CP No. 21/2022, let alone make a similar request when this Court was hearing the petition,” the order stated, adding that the application is not maintainable and has no merit.
To conclude, we would want to clarify that, as things stand right now, this Court has exclusive jurisdiction over requests to live broadcast or live-stream, even though they can be made and challenged.”
