Islamabad:
A District and Sessions Court in Islamabad on Thursday partially set aside a lower court’s order to block some YouTube channels in view of their alleged anti-state content.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka canceled the verdict from a judicial magistrate and accepted the petitions filed by 11 content creators, including some senior journalists.
During the case, the judge expressed dissatisfaction with the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) accusations. He noted that the agency seemed to move its responsibility to the court and warned that such practice would not be allowed. He asked under which authority the channels were blocked and warned against attempts to malignant judges.
Islamabad Justicial Magistrate Abbas Shah On July 8, the blocking of 27 YouTube channels-all ordered by Pakistani journalists and content creators-in consideration of their alleged anti-state content. The channels include those run by recognized journalists such as Orya Maqbool Jan, Aftab Iqbal, Mutiullah Jan and Imran Khan Riaz and Asad Toor.
Eleven of the contested content creators had challenged the decision in District and Sessions Court, which heard their appeals collectively.
Previously, the Court clarified that petitions would only be entertained if the applicants or their lawyers appeared in court, adding that cases without representation would be rejected for non-tension.
