Court orders regulator to ban uploading of obscene material on YouTube from Pakistan

Karachi: A Pakistani Court ordered the telecom regulator here Wednesday to take necessary measures to delete all obscene matter on YouTube Pakistan and to ensure that no obscene material is uploaded on YouTube, the world’s biggest video-sharing website that allows registered users to upload videos/photographs and permits unregistered users to watch the uploaded videos over two billion of which was served each day by You Tube in May 2010, from Pakistan.

The court directed the Standing Counsel Shahab Sarki to inform Deputy Attorney General to tell Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), the official telecom regulator and watchdog, the Court would hold him personally responsible for failure to implement its order.

The order was issued by a Division Bench of the High Court of Sindh, Pakistan’s second most populated province, comprising Justice Amir Hani Muslim and Justice Syed Zakir Hussain on a constitution petition filed by Sikander Shah who prayed the court to order the relevant police officials to register a FIR, First Information Report required for necessary police action and investigation of an illegal act, against respondent Faheem Mughal for uploading altered obscene photographs of his daughter Saba on YouTube.

According to petitioner, who is a resident of Mirpur Khas, respondent Fahim who was a class fellow of her daughter took her photographs on his mobile camera and also managed to acquire some of her other photographs, altered and uploaded them on YouTube leaving them for viewing for millions of users of the website worldwide. He pleads the court that Fahim has committed a criminal act that has brought undeserved disgrace and shame to his daughter, him and his family and thus should be adequately punished as per the law.

The court also ordered the Town Police Officer of Mirpur Khas to register the FIR against Fahim Mughal and to have the case investigated by a police officer no lower than the level of a DSP. The Court also ordered respondent Fahim Mughal to deposit a personal surety bond in the sum of Rs 100,000.

The case will next come up for hearing on June 22.