Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry on Friday said that there was no need to censor the interviews of ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s daughter and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Maryam Nawaz, adding that censorship was not the best way to counter ideologies.
Commenting on the recent media blackouts of interviews given by Maryam to various news channels, Fawad told a private news outfit that he personally believed that there was no need to censor the interviews.
“Politics should be countered with politics,” said the minister.
Fawad said that elements who believed that they could handle the political situation through censorship in 2019 were still living in the old days.
“Censorship is an outdated idea,” he quipped.
The minister, who has often faced the ire of his party’s senior leadership due to his bold statements, said that he has never shied from verbalizing his thoughts.
Fawad called for regulating the social media, claiming that some social media groups “start trends against any person by taking money”.
Commenting on civil-military relations, the minister said that the army’s role was key to strengthening democracy in Pakistan.
“If the army decides that it won’t let democracy flourish in the country, it won’t,” he said, adding that the working relationship between the army and civilian government was at its best since the new government had taken over.
