Hamid Mir, who arrived in the Supreme Court on a wheelchair along with a large number of media persons, appeared before the Judicial Commission for the second time and recorded his statement before the commission, constituted for probing the assassination bid on him.Earlier, he had appeared before the commission in the Supreme Court’s Karachi Registry.

Clad in blue shirt and light blue trouser, Hamid Mir was accompanied by his brother Amir Mir, the National Press Club president and a large number of journalists, chanting slogans in favour of the brave journalist.

Later, after recording his statement before the commission that lasted for over one hour, Hamid Mir left the Supreme Court.On April 21, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, after formal request from the government, had approved the names of three judges of the Supreme Court for Judicial Commission that is investigating the incident of attack on Hamid Mir.

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The commission headed by Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali is to ascertain facts, identify culprits and fix responsibility for the incident.Hamid Mir was injured in armed attack near Karachi airport on April 19. The commission after briefing by police officers adjourned the proceedings and also issued notice to Hamid Mir for May 19 at Islamabad.

It is pertinent to mention that the commission had already recorded statements of Hamid Mir, his brother Amir Mir, Geo TV administration officials and head of investigation team DSP Ayub Bhurgari. Home Secretary, IG Sindh, Additional IG Karachi, DG Rangers Sindh, Joint Director Intelligence Bureau, DIG East, DIG Special Branch, SSP Traffic and other police officers have already appeared before the Commission along with relevant record of the incident and submitted their confidential reports.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had requested Chief Justice of Pakistan to constitute a judicial inquiry commission to probe the incident. Other members of the commission are Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan and Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman. The commission shall also make recommendations to avoid such incidents in future.

The commission had also published advertisements in newspapers saying any person having information about the incident can give evidence before the commission and his identity would not be disclosed. However, no eyewitness of the incident has appeared before the commission as yet.

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The commission headed by Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, which has been given the responsibilities to ascertain facts, identify culprits and fix responsibility for the incident, has been briefed by Additional IG Karachi Shahid Hayat and DIG East Munir Sheikh about the progress in the Hamid Mir attack case.

They informed the SC commission about the investigation of the case being conducted on different angles. The other members of commission included Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan and Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman. Geo TV anchorperson Hamid Mir was injured in armed attack near Karachi airport on April 19. The commission after briefing by the police officers adjourned the proceedings. The commission also issued notice to Hamid Mir on May 19 at Islamabad.

The commission had already recorded statements of Hamid Mir, his brother Amir Mir, Geo TV administration’s officials and head of investigation team DSP Ayub Bhurgari. Home Secretary, IG Sindh, Additional IG Karachi, DG Rangers Sindh, Joint Director Intelligence Bureau, DIG East, DIG Special Branch, SSP Traffic and other police officers had already appeared before the commission along with relevant record of the incident and submitted their confidential reports.

The commission has also published an advertisement in newspaper that any person who is aware of the facts regarding attack on Hamid Mir could give evidence before the commission and his identity would not be disclosed. However, no eyewitness of the incident has appeared before the commission so far.

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On the occasion of hearing of the case on Thursday, the petitioners and their counsel did not appear before Justice Riaz Ahmed Khan.The petitioners, Saqib Javed and Arshad Hussain, residents of Khanewal and Islamabad, made the prime minister, the defence and information ministries, Pemra chairman, Jang and Geo Group and senior journalists including Amir Mir and Ansar Abbasi, parties in the case.

It was held that the allegations levelled on the ISI were against the security and sovereignty of the country and were tantamount to hatching conspiracies against the institution. The petitioners said that the prime minister, the defence ministry, the information ministry and Pemra failed to perform their responsibilities as they did not take action against Geo.Because neither the petitioners nor their counsel appeared before the court, the petition was disposed of.

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Justice Riaz Ahmed Khan of the IHC took up the application filed by Independent Media Corporation and Mir Ibrahim-ur-Rahman on Thursday.

Senior lawyer Akram Sheikh appeared before the IHC on behalf of Geo TV. He contended before the court that Geo TV’s senior anchor Hamid Mir was attacked in Karachi on April 19 and the incident was covered worldwide. He said that the Geo TV did not level any charges against any institution but the allegations of Hamid Mir’s brother Amir Mir were broadcast. He said that the three-member Judicial Commission constituted by the Supreme Court was carrying out an investigation into the incident and its findings were being awaited.

Akram Sheikh said that Geo TV received Pemra’s show cause notice on April 23 and the Ministry of Defence played the role of a courier company between an agency and Pemra, and the complaint of the ISI was sent to Pemra at 9:20pm on April 22, 2014 while Pemra, without reviewing the complaint, issued a show cause notice to Geo TV after 12 hours.

Akram Sheikh said that in the ISI’s complaint, it was charged that the Geo TV launched a campaign against the the ISI and its senior officials at 5:30pm and it was also blamed in the complaint that Geo Network was having a history of anti-Pakistan agenda. However, no such allegation was ever levelled or no such complaint was ever filed before. He said that the Pemra was working without a chairman as the Regulator was not authorised to receive any application and issue show cause notice. He said that the Council of Complaint was the right forum to file such application and summon the relevant people.

Akram Sheikh, while referring to the Pemra Ordinance 2002 Section 26, informed the court that it was the mandate of the Council of Complaint to receive the complaint and provide an opportunity of defence to the relevant people or the organisation and then present its recommendations.

He said that in Pemra’s notice received on April 23, the reply was sought within 14 days while it summoned the respondents two days before the end of the time and Pemra had no authority in this regard. When an objection was raised in this regard during the proceedings, it was said that such tactics should be avoided.

He said that he heard such things for the first time in his 42 years of practice in law. He said that Pemra had convened a meeting on Friday to close down Geo TV. At this, Justice Riaz said that it was possible that his objections might be considered in that meeting.

Afterwards, Akram Sheikh cited the verdicts of the Indian courts regarding the freedom of press and appealed to the court that the notice issued by Pemra might be declared as illegal and null and void and the proceedings in Pemra might be stopped. After going through the arguments, the court reserved the verdict. After some time, the court disposed of the petition announcing the short order.

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The requisition contained more than 100 signatures of support by lawyers. Virk contended that Geo ‘tarnished the image of the ISI by holding it responsible for Hamid Mir’s attack without any evidence’. He said the ISI chief was partrayed as an accused by Geo and foreign media took advantage of the situation in order to damage the security institution’s reputation.

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The participants said that over two weeks have passed but Hamid Mir attackers have not been arrested yet. They expressed their concerns that instead of arresting the attackers, cases are being registered against journalists. They demanded immediate withdrawal of case against Amir Mir, saying such acts could not stop journalists from their right to freedom of expression. They vowed to foil every conspiracy against Jang/Geo on any pretext.

Among the participants were Zahid Rafique Bhatti, Qamaruz Zaman Bhatti, Rizwan Khalid, Punjab Union of Journalists President Waseem Farooq, senior journalist Khawar Naeem Hashmi, Mian Abid, Gohar Butt, Imran Ehsan, Waseem Babar, Umar Sharif, Abid Nawaz, etc.

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In Islamabad, Justice Riaz Ahmad Khan of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended the order of an Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) and Justice of Peace Muhammad Jehangir Awan who had directed the Islamabad police on May 3 to register an FIR against Geo officials and journalist Amir Mir.

In Rawalpindi, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood of the Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi Bench, dismissed a petition and an application of a private person seeking Pemra to proceed against Geo TV.

In Bahawalpur, District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Rasheed Qamar dismissed on Monday a petition under Section 22-A for the registration of an FIR against Geo TV and the Jang Group. It was filed by one Ghulam Abbas, a resident of Bankers Colony, Bahawalpur.

In Faisalabad, Additional District and Sessions Judge Muzaffar Hussain Gul disposed of a petition submitted by Arshad Ali Awan advocate for the registration of a case against Geo News.

In Lahore, Additional District and Sessions Judge Ghulam Abbas Sial directed the SHO concerned to proceed strictly in accordance with the law.The Islamabad High Court bench also issued notices to the respondents in the two applications challenging the order of the ADSJ.

Faisal Iqbal Khan, Amir Abdullah Abbasi and Behzad Haider, legal counsel for the Geo officials and Amir Mir, contended before the court that the petitioner has no locus standi and the Ministry of Defence has already lodged a complaint with Pemra in this regard.

They argued that to file a complaint, it is necessary to access the police for registration of an FIR before coming to court. A station house officer (SHO) had intimated the ADSJ that the police received no such application but even then the judge ordered the registration of an FIR.

The lawyers argued that the attack on Hamid Mir was also outside the territorial jurisdiction of Islamabad.Meanwhile, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood of the Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi Bench, dismissed a petition and an application of a private person seeking Pemra to proceed against Geo TV under Sections 27, 30, 33 and 34 of the Pemra Ordinance 2002 and against the Ministry of Interior for lodging a complaint in terms of Section 196 CrPC against the management of the Geo TV network.

The petitioner through another application sought from the court to direct Pemra to stop Geo TV from airing programmes allegedly against the ‘sensitive’ institutions. LHC Rawalpindi Bench, however, dismissed both petitions and a detailed judgment is yet to come.

Petitioner Syed Khalil Hussain Shah Kazmi, a resident of Jhelum, made Pemra, the federation through the interior and information secretaries, Geo TV and the Ministry of Defence through its secretary respondents. He described himself as a social worker.

The petitioner alleged Geo TV has violated the provisions of the Pemra Ordinance. “Controversial and objectionable programmes” telecast by Geo TV after the attack on Hamid Mir are also covered by section 120-A, 120-B, 121 and 123-A of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), he contented.

The petitioner said that it is the primary duty of the federal government to defend and protect national institutions, particularly the institutions of national security and the armed forces.

The petitioner pleaded that the government should have not only ensured proceedings under the Pemra Ordinance but also launched a complaint under Sections 196 Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) against the management of Geo TV and others. The petitioner prayed to the court to direct the Ministry of Interior to lodge a complaint in terms of Section 196 CrPC against the management of the Geo TV network.

Ameen Abbasi adds from Bahawalpur: District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Rasheed Qamar dismissed a petition under Section 22-A for registration of an FIR against Geo TV and the Jang Group filed by one Ghulam Abbas, a resident of Bankers Colony, Bahawalpur, on Monday.

Before dismissing the petition in preliminary arguments, the judge asked the petitioner and his counsel, Zafar Iqbal Awan, whether the petitioner is an aggrieved person, and what locus standi he has for moving this application. He also asked if the two petitions about the same occurrence, filed by different persons before the Islamabad High Court and Sindh High Court, have been dismissed or not.

The judge asked whether the governement has not already moved an application to Pemra and whether a high-powered judicial commission, comprising three Supreme Court judges, has not been constituted for a judicial probe into the same matter. When the counsel was not in a position to explain the status of the petitioner and stated that he has no knowledge about it, the judge dismissed the petition.

The court observed that the petitioner, being a private person, has no locus standi to file this petition and ordered for filing the petition to the record room.

Our correspondent adds from Faisalabad: Faisalabad Additional District and Sessions Judge Muzaffar Hussain Gul on Monday disposed of a petition submitted by Arshad Ali Awan advocate for the registration of a case against Geo News.

The court asked Arshad to contact Pemra which was the appropriate forum. The Sargodha Road police told the court that the incident did not take place in their jurisdiction. So a case could not be registered on this application. After hearing the police version, the court disposed of the petition.

In the petition, Arshad took the stance that the army and the ISI had been ridiculed against the backdrop of an attack on Hamid Mir. The petitioner said he contacted the police for the registration of the case and submitted the petition after the police refused to file it.

The petition had made the Faisalabad capital police officer, Amir Mir, Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, Geo directors and the Sargodha Road SHO party to the case. Our Correspondent adds from Lahore: Additional District and Sessions Judge Ghulam Abbas Sial on Monday directed the SHO concerned to record the statement of the petitioner on the plea seeking the registration of a criminal case against the management of Geo News, Amir Mir (brother of Hamid Mir) and other group officials.

The judge directed the SHO Islampura to record the statement of the petitioner and proceed strictly in accordance with the law if any cognizable offence was made.Earlier, the SHO Islampura had submitted his statement contending that the matter did not fall in his jurisdiction, while there had also been no cognizable offence. He had said a commission had been constituted on the issue and police could not take any initiative before the findings of that commission. The application which was submitted to him was not maintainable, the SHO added. Moreover, the competent authority in the matter was the Defence Ministry which filed a complaint before Pemra — the competent forum to redress the points raised by the petitioner.

The Geo News counsel, Salman Faisal, had argued that according to the Pemra Act, no petition could be filed; therefore, the application had no standing and was not maintainable.As per the case details, the petitioner, Aftab Virk, had alleged in his petition that Amir Mir intentionally spoke against a state institution without any solid evidence.

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Hamir Mir issued his first official statement on Thursday after regaining consciousness. In his statement, Hamid Mir thanked the Pakistani people and said it was due to their prayers and the grace of Allah that he has gotten a new life.

He said that he had informed the Geo management, his family and close friends of threats he was facing prior to the April 19 attack. Hamid Mir said he had identified the elements from whom he was facing threats and they were identified by his brother Amir Mir following the attack.

According to Hamid Mir, he had informed close associates, apart from Amir Mir, about who would be held responsible if he was attacked. Hamid Mir said he had threats from state and non-state actors but in the recent past such events had taken place which led him to inform his colleagues about the elements who could be involved in conspiracies to kill him.

Hamid Mir said that a few days ago, some members of intelligence agencies came to his house and informed him that his name, along with that of other journalists, was on a hit-list.

Despite being asked, these people did not provide any details pertaining to who had made the hit-list. After this meeting, Hamid Mir informed officials at concerned departments that in the past he had threats from state and non-state actors because usually state actors use the name of non-state actors to threaten journalists so they can be stopped from telling the truth.

According to Hamid Mir, he had informed the intelligence personnel who came to his house that he felt threatened the most by the ISI and they should convey this to their officers. Hamid Mir further said that the ISI was upset with him because of a ‘Capital Talk’ programme which covered the long march of Mama Qadir Baloch. Hamid Mir added that he was aware of the ISI being upset over his criticism of the role of intelligence agencies in politics.

Hamid Mir said that if officials had reports of threats he was facing why was he not informed in writing. He questioned why those who had planted a bomb underneath his car in November 2012 were not exposed despite the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claiming responsibility for it?

According to Hamid Mir, phone numbers of those who had issued him death threats were provided to the Islamabad Police, but why did the police not take action against them? He said that despite a police report, action was not taken against those who had attacked his children in Islamabad.

Hamid Mir said that he would provide further details of these incidents when the time comes. He said his life was in the hands of Allah and he was answerable before the Almighty.

Hamid Mir said his fight was the same as that of his father Professor Waris Mir. This was a fight for Pakistan’s survival, safety and to strengthen the country. His fight was for democracy, elimination of terrorism, supremacy of law, protection of freedom of expression, rights of small province and to be the voice of the poor. He added that this voice could not be silenced.

Hamid Mir said that he was working alongside the media, civil society, and political parties in this fight. The senior Geo News anchor said that he would continue to wage this fight till his last breath. He added that no institution or individual in Pakistan was above the law or constitution.

Hamid Mir said after being shot multiple times he now understands the gravity of the sacrifices rendered by the jawans of the Pakistan Amry and security forces better than someone who has not been through the same ordeal.

Mir said this does not mean that he should remain silent on the unconstitutional role of the intelligence agencies in politics in the name of being patriotic.Hamid Mir strongly condemned the government and state enforced shutdown of Geo transmission, adding that in the past Geo News had stood firm when it was banned during the dictatorship of General (R) Musharraf. With the support of the people and God willing, Hamid Mir said the Geo team would once again overcome such measures.

Hamid Mir expressed fear over the security of his brother Amir Mir and other family members and said if they were harmed the responsibility would be on state elements and the government. Hamid Mir said that Allah had saved his life which proved that the Almighty was more powerful than those who had attacked him.Hamid Mir appealed to people to continue their prayers for his health and complete recovery.

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Jang Group

and Amir Mir, brother of injured Geo News anchor Hamid Mir, over the charges of tarnishing the image of the Pakistan Army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). As per the case details, the petitioner Sardar Aftab Ahmed Virk contended that the Jang Group and Geo News attempted to malign the Pakistan Army and its subsidiary institution, the ISI. He said the Jang Group and Geo News, without holding any inquiry, blamed the key security institutions of the country.

The petitioner alleged that the media group, in collaboration with foreign powers, tried to malign the security institutions of Pakistan. He said he heard the propaganda at Geo News channel which hurt his sentiments as being a Pakistani.

He implored the court to direct the SHO Islampura to register a treason case against the accused. The court, after hearing arguments of complainant, sought comments from the SHO by April 23.

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