IHC dismisses petition seeking ban on JUI-F over Fazl's anti-army statement.

ISLAMABAD -- A petition seeking a ban on Jamiat-e-Ulema-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and its chief, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, over an anti-army statement was dismissed on Tuesday by the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

Chief Justice IHC Justice Athar Minallah questioned why the high court should prevent any person from exercising their right to freedom of speech. 'Even the judiciary is criticised,' he noted. 'Our own record should be good enough for people to not raise a finger on us.'

'How many people will we ban? In the age of globalisation and social media, we cannot bar every person from speaking,' observed the IHC chief justice. Justice Minallah also stressed that the country should allow citizens to speak freely.

The petitioner, Shahjahan Khan, had sought a ban on the broadcast of Falz's speeches and asked why the federal government had failed to take action against JUI-F leader for speaking against the military.

He added in the petition that the Fazl was liable to be charged with high treason due to his...