Punjab Assembly calls for ban on celebrities’ Ramadan TV shows

Tariq Butt / Staff Reporter

A resolution seeking a ban on celebrities hosting Ramadan transmissions has been unanimously passed by the Punjab Assembly (PA). The assembly requested the federal government to ensure that TV channels display the utmost respect for Ramadan in their transmissions and invite religious scholars to the programmes.

The resolution was submitted on April 30 on behalf of the Pakistan Rah-e-Haq party’s parliamentary leader Maulana Muhammad Muavia Azam.

“Having people associated with showbiz host Ramadan transmissions is an unfortunate practice. Ramadan transmissions are hosted by people who have no affiliation with the ranks of the Islamic faith. This practice afflicts the spirits of millions of Muslims every year,” the motion said.

It included an appeal to the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) to enforce the ban on celebrities hosting Ramadan shows. The regulator did not respond to the appeal.

Many celebrities have hosted Ramadan transmissions in recent years, including Fahad Mustafa, Ayesha Omar, Hamza Ali Abbasi, Juggan Kazim, Sanam Baloch, Imran Abbas, among others.

They know little about religion but do lecture on it, at times creating controversies. Some religious scholars have been also urging these persons to refrain from hosting religious programmes.

However, they are not at fault as the real problem lies with the TV channels, who are always crazy for rating so that they take maximum advertisements.

Meanwhile, the Pemra sold in an open bidding 36 television licences for three categories — News & Current Affairs, Entertainment and Regional Language.

The highest bid, Rs283.5 million, came for the News & Current Affairs category. A total of eight licences were available. As many as thirty-two applicants took part in the open bidding. All those who stood from number one to number eight were awarded licences. They matched the highest bid.

There were 27 licences available for the entertainment category. A total of sixteen aspirants qualified. The highest bid, Rs50.5 million, was matched by all the applicants. No bidding was held as the number of applications was less than the number of licences.