LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) mandated that all candidates running in the general elections on February 8 receive equal media attention, including the imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder has appealed against the purported ban on media coverage of his speeches, and the LHC has issued an order in response.
The PTI founder’s plea was denied by the LHC earlier this month, with a note that specific instructions on the PTI leader’s statements would be provided in a comprehensive ruling.
On Wednesday, the 10-page written ruling on the imprisoned PTI founder’s appeal against the purported ban on his media coverage was released by Justice Shams Mirza Mehmood of the LHC.
The LHC ruled in the ruling that, among other rights, every person is guaranteed the right to free speech under Article 17 of the Constitution.
All political parties have a basic right, according to the LHC, to wage an election campaign and promote an election manifesto.
It said that free polls are impossible without permitting freedom of expression and that freedom of speech should be permitted through free media in order to hold free and transparent elections.
In the written verdict, the LHC court also referenced precedent from the cases of former prime ministers Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto.
The LHC received comments from the federal government, the communications ministry, and other parties, such as Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory (Pemra).
