Chief Justice says shutting down Geo is violation of Constitution

ISLAMABAD: The deposed Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has said that the closing down of Geo News and ARY TV channels is a violation of Article 19 of the Constitution which, he insists, is still in place but is being violated. Talking to The News here late on Saturday night, Justice Iftikhar said that the Constitution not only protected the freedom of the press but also guarded the right of the people to know. He lamented that both the Dubai-based Pakistani international television channels had been shut down, thus depriving the people both within Pakistan and outside to know all that was happening in the country and outside. “In the presence of a strong judiciary, no such curbs on the media are possible,” Justice Iftikhar said and hoped that the things would improve and both the television channels would soon be back in action. “The private television channels, particularly Geo, was doing such a wonderful job but I don’t know why they have been forced to go off air,” Justice Iftikhar said. Justice Iftikhar sounded confident like always and did not give even a slight hint of desperation. When asked if he has any regrets or worries, the deposed Chief Justice asked this correspondent why should he be worried or have regrets when he did not do anything wrong and had always struggled for the rule of law and for the rights of the people. He was confident that the country would again see the rule of law and vowed that his fight for the constitutional rule would continue till his last breath. Referring to the latest media curbs and the threats to media persons, Justice Iftikhar asked this correspondent with a lot of concern, “Are you fine?”, and added that media had an important role to play to uphold the rule of law and the Constitution in the country. He reiterated that the post-Nov 3 set-up did not have any validity in the eyes of law and the Constitution. He pointed out that the caretaker Prime Minister Muhammadmian Soomro had taken the oath of his new office under the Constitution and not under the Provisional Constitution Order, a fact that proved that the 1973 Constitution was still valid and so was the position of the superior judiciary as it was before Nov 3. Barring few exceptions, Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and others who had refused to take oath under the PCO, are still under house arrest but still determined and full of resolve. Justice Iftikhar said that the conditions of their house arrest remained unchanged and still neither the judges nor their families were allowed to go out or have visitors. Justice Iftikhar said that even his school going children were not attending their institutions and had also been house-arrested.