On Friday, the Supreme Court accepted lawmakers Faisal Vawda and Mustafa Kamal’s apologies for their critical remarks about the judiciary and cautioned them against further offenses. Additionally, the court reissued show-cause notices to 34 media channels, with 26 receiving particular scrutiny from Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa for insufficient explanations.
The court, comprising a three-judge panel led by CJP Isa, resumed the contempt proceedings following accusations of the lawmakers making “malicious” claims against the judiciary.
Earlier in the month, the Supreme Court demanded that these channels explain why they should not face contempt charges for broadcasting contentious remarks.
On June 4, Kamal provided an unconditional apology, whereas Vawda initially requested a withdrawal of the charges. Later, he extended an unconditional apology for the potential harm caused by his statements at a May 18 press conference.
Both Vawda and Kamal appeared before the Supreme Court today. Legal representation included Barrister Farogh Naseem for Kamal and Advocate Faisal Siddiqui for the 26 channels that responded to the court’s inquiries.
During the session, CJP Isa confirmed Vawda’s apology, leading to the withdrawal of show-cause notices against the lawmakers. Justice Isa stressed the expectation that both would adhere to their court statements to avoid future issues.
The notices to the television channels were reconsidered, but CJP Isa noted that the responses, though signed by the council, were not officially recognized as direct submissions from the channels. The replies were deemed nearly identical and insufficiently justified the broadcasts under public interest and informational rights claims.
Consequently, the court decided to proceed with show-cause notices for all channels that responded and contempt notices for those that did not, based on the insufficiency of their defenses and the need to demonstrate mal-intent to establish contempt.
