ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) has upheld its earlier decision to suspend Geo News over the depiction of religious figures in the channel’s transmission aired on Muharram 10, warning that any future violation could lead to the cancellation of its licence.
As the suspension period expired on Saturday, the channel resumed transmission at midnight.
In its final order, issued after the authority’s 191st meeting held on Saturday, Pemra said it had conducted a detailed review of the matter, taking into account the recommendations of the Council of Complaints, Lahore, the record of proceedings, the written and oral submissions of the licence holder, the Pemra Ordinance 2002, the relevant rules, and the Electronic Media (Programmes and Advertisements) Code of Conduct, 2015.
The Council of Complaints deliberated on the case during its 127th, 128th and 129th meetings held on June 30, July 2 and July 10, respectively.
After hearing Geo News representatives, examining the record and considering the opinion of the Council of Islamic Ideology, it forwarded its recommendations to the authority.
Pemra said Geo News and its representatives were given a fair opportunity to present their defence before the final decision was taken.
The authority held that the violation was of a serious nature and was inconsistent with the obligations of a licence holder under the Pemra laws and the standards of responsible broadcasting.
While acknowledging that Geo News had admitted negligence, expressed remorse and issued an unconditional apology across all its media platforms, Pemra said these mitigating factors did not erase the violation or its legal consequences.
According to the order, the authority affirmed the June 27 decision suspending the channel’s licence for 15 days.
The suspension will remain effective until midnight today, after which transmissions may only resume once the suspension period has expired and the channel pays the Rs10 million fine imposed by the regulator.
Published in Dawn, July 12th, 2026
