(Disclaimer: this is a work of fiction. Learn to take a joke; you’ll live longer.)
The federal government has decided in principle to give the military courts another extension, this time for an indefinite period of time, in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s announcement that it shall be exclusively delving into the issue of Filmazia’s objectionable content.
Earlier, in the hearing of an appeal against objectionable content, Pemra chief Saleem Baig had told the court that 65 percent of the content on Filmazia was Indian. At this, the chief justice had replied “we till not allow Indian content to be aired on [Pakistani] channels.”
When the Pemra chief stated that “Filmazia is not a news channel but is an entertainment channel; it does not do any propaganda”, the chief justice replied: “It is, however, damaging our culture.”
The CJP proceeded to then ‘drop the mic’ as the other honourable judges started clapping. At the conclusion of the hearing, the CJP announced that the apex court – all seventeen of the justices – is going to devote itself exclusively to the monitoring of content from Filmazia.
The Law and Justice Division, in response, has not only extended the military courts, but also extended their ambit to hear civil and commercial cases as well. Legal analysts have expressed an ambivalence to the decision.
“If they can send people to be hanged, no big deal letting them decide civil cases either,” said Dr Fazal Bangash, chairperson, Law Department, University of Peshawar.
