IHC issues notices to former generals Bajwa, Faiz over ‘misleading interviews’

• News articles based on interviews "misleading," says petitioner.
• “Criminal act” committed under guise of media freedom, alleges petitioner.
• IHC CJ issues notices to Javed Chaudhry and Shahid Maitla.

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has issued notices to former army chief General (retired) Qamar Javed Bajwa and ex-spy chief Lt Gen (retired) Faiz Hameed on a petition seeking action against them for allegedly violating laws pertaining to retired servicemen by distorting facts of various events during media interviews.

Besides the former military officials, IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq also issued notices to journalists Javed Chaudhary, Shahid Maitla and Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) on citizen Atif Ali's petitions.

The petition alleged that the journalists wrote two articles based on the interviews of the retired generals for viewership which had a “negative impact” on the society.

The petitioner further alleged that under the guise of freedom of speech, a “criminal act” was committed and a request was filed for the registration of a case but no action had been taken yet.

The plea sought the IHC's direction to the authorities to register a case.

The petitioner claimed that former generals Bajwa and Faiz tainted the national events by portraying them in a false and fabricated manner.

In order to gain traction, the news articles presented a negative image of the state institutions under the garb of journalism.

It further said that the ongoing campaign in the context of these incidents is an attempt to create distrust between the people and the state institutions.

Earlier this year, the former army chief reportedly discussed various matters including PTI chief Imran Khan’s ouster from power, civil-military ties and other issues in interviews with the journalists.