PEMRA suspends ARY News licence in Pakistan

The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has suspended the licence of ARY News in Pakistan for 15 days.

The channel has also been fined 10 million rupees by PEMRA. In a statement by PEMRA, it said that ARY News had not been complying with regulations set out by the regulator. It said that ARY News had been “maligning honourable courts and judiciary”.

This is the second time ARY News has been suspended this year. Similarly, Geo News was also suspended for a period in June following a defamation row with the powerful ISI intelligence agency.

ARY News reports that senior journalists and political figures have strongly criticised the decision and labeled it victimization of a media organization for keeping the masses informed about what is actually going on in the state.