No Indian movie to be released in Pakistan: information minister

Published February 26, 2019
Fawad Chaudhry says he has "instructed Pemra (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) to act against made-in-India advertisements". — DawnNewsTV/File
Fawad Chaudhry says he has "instructed Pemra (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) to act against made-in-India advertisements". — DawnNewsTV/File

In the wake of the Indian Air Force's (IAF) violation of the Line of Control (LoC), Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Tuesday said the Pakistan Film Exhibitors Association has "boycotted Indian content" and that no Indian movie is to "be released in Pakistan".

The information minister further said that he has "instructed Pemra (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) to act against made-in-India advertisements".

Relations between Pakistan and India have been tense since a suicide bombing in occupied Kashmir killed over 40 Indian soldiers, with New Delhi blaming Pakistan of being complicit in the attack — a charge Islamabad has denied vehemently and from the get-go.

The tensions today soared even more after the Indian Air Force's (IAF) violation of the Line of Control (LoC) — a transgression for which Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor, the director general (DG) of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), has warned New Delhi to "wait for our response".

Banning of each other's content in India and Pakistan has precedent. In 2016, Pemra had imposed a complete ban on airing Indian content on local television and FM radio channels.

The decision was largely seen as a tit-for-tat move after similar actions were taken by some channels and the entertainment industry in India against Pakistani content and artists.

In 2017, the Lahore High Court had lifted the Pemra-imposed ban, declaring it null and void as the federal government had no objections regarding the same.

The following year, the Supreme Court — while hearing a case filed by the United Producers Association pertaining to the broadcast of foreign content on Pakistani television channels — had reinstated the ban on the transmission of Indian content on local television channels, setting aside the LHC orders.

Opinion

Editorial

TTP’s reach
Updated 22 Sep, 2024

TTP’s reach

The TTP — particularly its activities inside Afghanistan — should be a matter of global concern, specifically for regional states.
Parliamentary ‘coup’
22 Sep, 2024

Parliamentary ‘coup’

SOME have celebrated the recent ‘elimination’ of a major political party from the National Assembly with the...
Fixing the flaws
22 Sep, 2024

Fixing the flaws

THE Pakistan women’s cricket team is heading to next month’s T20 World Cup without winning a series in the...
Democracy in peril
Updated 21 Sep, 2024

Democracy in peril

The govt is forcing the SC into a direct confrontation with the legislature.
Far from finish line
21 Sep, 2024

Far from finish line

FROM six cases in the first half of the year, Pakistan has now gone to 18 polio cases. Of the total, 13 have been...
Brutal times
Updated 21 Sep, 2024

Brutal times

The latest string of chilling episodes confirm a pattern of unlawful police violence endorsed by mobs.