Case Update Status

Case dismissed, the LHC's registrar office noted in an objection sheet that the application had not been first submitted to the relevant forum and had instead directly been filed to the high court.

Summary of Case

"On 4 June, 2021 A petition seeking sedition charges against veteran journalist and TV anchorperson Hamid Mir and Senior Journalist Asma Sherazi was filed in the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday for his speech ""containing very serious derogatory remarks and allegations against the disciplined institution of Pakistan"".

Mir, the longtime host of the popular Capital Talk, had last week delivered a fiery speech in Islamabad calling for accountability for the repeated assaults on journalists while speaking at a protest against the attack on Asad Ali Toor. Mir had also warned in his speech of retaliation if the attacks on journalists continued.

Petition against Mir and Asma was filed by Advocate Nadeem Sarwar on behalf of Sardar Farrukh Mushtaq and named the Federation of Pakistan through the Ministry of Law and Justice, the Ministry of Interior and Mir as respondents.

The petition, a copy of which is available claimed that Mir's behaviour amounted to contempt of society and its institutions and that the respondents had failed to take appropriate action in accordance with Section 124-A (Sedition) of the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860.

""Sedition is a crime against the whole society, in all civilised countries and orderly governments. The integrity and preservation of [the] state and its institutions is [a] matter of great vital concern and is so sacred that no attempt at its disruption or weakening, directly or indirectly will be countenanced.

""In the present case the federal government has failed to lodge a complaint against Hamid Mir which is [a] mandatory duty of the government. The act and inaction on upon the part of government functionaries amount to dereliction of duty prescribed by the Constitution and law,"" the petitioner argued.

The petition urged the LHC to direct the government to lodge a complaint against Mir through an authorised individual. The LHC's registrar office, meanwhile, noted in an objection sheet — seen by Dawn.com — that the application had not been first submitted to the relevant forum and had instead directly been filed to the high court.

The Registrar Office (RO) of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday returned a petition to a lawyer/petitioner who sought a direction to the Ministry of Interior to initiate treason proceedings against journalist Hamid Mir.

Putting an objection on the maintainability of the petition, the Office said the petitioner needed to approach the first forum for remedy available in the law. Sardar Farrukh Mushtaq, a lawyer by profession, filed the petition through Advocate Nadeem Sarwar saying the journalist delivered a hatred speech containing ‘derogatory’ remarks and allegations against the disciplined institution of the country."

Category of Incident

Case Register

ICCS Status

ICCS Divisions: 0202-Acts against liberty

ICCS Group: 0202-Acts against liberty

ICCS Class: 0202-Acts against liberty

ICCS Crime: 0202-Acts against liberty

Reported By

Dawn

Date of incident

4

Month

June

Year

2021

Name of affected person

Hamid Mir

Other affected persons

Asma Sherazi

Name of affected organization

Geo News

Other affected organizations

Aaj News

Action by

Advocate Nadeem Sarwar on behalf of Sardar Farrukh Mushtaq

City

Lahore

Province

Punjab

Designation

Anchor

Professional category

Journalist

Age of victim

Hamid Mir 55 Asma Sherazi 54

Marital Status

Compensation Details

Amount of compensation announced by government: No compensation announced

Date of compensation announcement by government: No compensation announced

Date of compensation paid by government: No compensation announced

Amount of compensation announced by others: No compensation announced

Date of compensation announced by others: No compensation announced

Date compensation paid by others: No compensation announced

FIR Details

Was FIR registered ?: No

Court Details

Was case investigated ?: Case closed

Court where case was presented: Lahore High Court

Name of prosecuting lawyer: N/A

Date of first court hearing:

Date of last court hearing:

Status of court case: Case closed

Journalist Union Status

PFUJ

N/A

APNS

CPNE

PBA

Media Source Status

Media reports:

Condemn Status

Colleague of victim

N/A

Employer organization

N/A

Press Club Status

Press club 1: N/A

Press club 2:

Press club 3: