Geo TV should retract anti-establishment statement: Pak Min

Pakistan's Interior Minister today said Jang group, which owns Geo TV, would have to retract its steps in the greater national interest in wake of the controversy surrounding the assassination attempt on its leading anchor Hamid Mir.
Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan told reporters outside the Parliament House that it was the government's constitutional and legal responsibility to protect the dignity of the Pakistan Army and other intelligence agencies, adding that there should be no ambiguity or fallacy in that respect.
The controversy erupted after Mir's brother accused "certain elements" in the ISI and its chief of orchestrating the attack, a charge denied by the military.

The Jang Group had also said: "We also want to bring it on the record that the ISI has been continuously and strongly complaining to our senior editors against some of our senior journalists, particularly against Hamid Mir. We will prove this and many other things at the proper time."
Current affairs talk show host Mir, 47, is recovering after being shot at least three times in his car in Karachi last Saturday.
The Defence Ministry has filed a complaint before the electronic media regulatory authority seeking cancellation of Geo TV's license.

Media reports said Geo TV has been blocked in military establishments here and many cable network operators have pushed it down the queue.

The Interior Minister said Jang group would have to retract its steps in the greater national interests of Pakistan, adding that the media trial over the attack on senior journalist Mir would have to end otherwise anti-state elements would take advantage of the situation, Dawn News reported.
Khan said he was personally trying to ensure that the situation would not be aggravated by either sides.
He said the ISPR (Inter Services Public Relations) had strongly condemned the attack on Mir and also demanded for an independent commission to probe the incident, adding that a media trial would create further confusion.

Khan said all forces and segments of society were on the same page over conducting a transparent investigation into the attack on Mir and to bring the perpetrators to justice.
He said an independent media as well as honourable and dignified armed forces were the needs of Pakistan. He advised both sides to remain patient and to avoid troublemakers.
Khan said Mir's family should come forward in case of any doubts over the Sindh police's investigation and the commission set up to probe the attack and that alternate options could be considered.