Ideas can't be stopped: Tewari on Pakistan ban

Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari Thursday criticized a Pakistani court's order to stop the screening of Indian content on TV channels, saying that films and serials are ideas that can't be stopped.

In a tweet, Tewari said: "Pakistani jingoists should know Films & TV serials are ideas & ideas can't be barred/ banned Pak govt must remove them from negative list ASAP."

The Lahore high court Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan Tuesday stayed the beaming of foreign content and ruled that Indian films and television serials were included in the "Negative List" under the current bilateral trade regime.

He also directed the federal government and the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to submit a detailed reply in this regard.

The order was issued in response to a petition filed last month by TV talk show host Mubashir Lucman, a former film producer who had contended that Indian films and TV serials were being imported in violation of Pakistani regulations.

The court move came days after 10 entertainment television channels in Pakistan were slapped with Rs.10 million fine for airing excessive Indian and foreign content.