Blasphemous material carried by social media: interior minister asked to appear before court

The Islamabad High Court on Tuesday issued directives to Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan to appear before the court in response to a plea seeking removal and blocking of pages containing blasphemous words, sketches and videos form the social media.
After hearing the matter, a single-member bench of Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui said in its order, "Due to delicacy, importance and seriousness of the issue, let Minister of Interior, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, be directed to appear in person for tomorrow, i.e. 8.3.2017, who is expected to take some steps in his own supervision to eliminate this evil, even at the cost of blocking entire social media."
On February 27, the court had granted three days to Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to block pages on social media containing blasphemous material.
Tariq Asad, the counsel for the petitioner, had made federal secretaries for Interior and Information Technology, director general of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and chairman PTA respondents.
Resuming the hearing of the matter on Tuesday, Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui said, "It is so shameful that delicate and sensitive matter in hand remained unattended by the Executive of the country. It is also painful that secretary interior did not bother to put appearance and preferred to attend some office meeting."
In compliance with the last order of the bench Chairman PTA Syed Ismail Shah, Inspector General of Police ICT Tariq Masood Yasin, Secretary IT Rizwan Bashir Khan and Project Director NRBC, FIA Dr. Shafiq-ur-Rehman along with other officials appeared before the court.
During the course of proceedings, the inspector general Islamabad submitted that if some order is passed in the current matter, he is ready to take action in accordance with law.
Later, the hearing of the matter was adjourned till March 08 (today).