The Media Joint Action Committee Monday took umbrage at Prime Minster Imran Khan’s false allegations leveled against the media in his public address on Sunday.
“Mr. Imran Khan alleged that media houses have been bought by political parties and some are also being funded from foreign sources. In effect, this amounts to accusing the media of corruption,” the JAC said in a joint statement issued on behalf of All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS), Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA), Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE), Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), and Association of Electronic Media Editors and News Directors (AEMEND). It challenged the prime minister to prove his scandalous allegations and said being in the government, he had the resources to investigate and prove them.
The Joint Action Committee asked the prime minister to understand that false and baseless statements about the media houses will not serve any purpose. It said the media and journalists were performing their professional responsibilities guaranteed by the Constitution.
The JAC requested the prime minister not to make such statements for political point-scoring.
The statement said if a proof could not be provided in support of the allegations within a reasonable time, the JAC reserved its right to approach the honourable judiciary for relief against these scandalous, false and defamatory allegations.
