A district and sessions court in Islamabad on Thursday overturned a judicial magistrate’s ruling that had directed the imposition of a ban on 11 YouTube channels.
In June, Judicial Magistrate Abbas Shah issued orders to authorities seeking a ban on 27 YouTube channels accused of circulating “anti-state” content. The order stated the ban was requested the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA). The affected channels, all belonging to Pakistani journalists or content creators, subsequently appealed the decision.
In the June ruling, the court had said the commentary on the channels constituted offenses punishable under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act [PECA] and Penal Laws of Pakistan. It had stated the court was satisfied with the evidence submitted by the NCCA, permitting legal action in accordance with law.
After hearing the pleas, Judge Afzal Majoka announced his reserved verdict on the appeals, accepting them and declaring the judicial magistrate’s order null and void.
During the hearing, Judge Majoka voiced displeasure to the NCCIA prosecutor. “You have started taking over our work; I will never allow this,” he remarked, questioning the authority under which the channels had been blocked. He stated this was part of an attempt to malign judges.
Amendments to the controversial PECA legislation were signed into law in January, imposing stricter penalties for disseminating fake news and anti-state content.