KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) Wednesday expressed deep concern over the continued country-wide disruption of internet services, questioning authorities about its restoration.
During the hearing of the case filed against the shutdown of internet services, Chief Justice Aqeel Ahmad Abbasi observed that the internet services aren’t even working within the court premises.
The lawyer representing the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) said the decision to shut down the internet was based on reports from intelligence agencies and that the PTA operates under the Interior Ministry.
This explanation led the chief justice to express disappointment over the impact of this shutdown on individuals and political campaigns reliant on the internet during the February 8 elections. He even suggested that if elections cannot be conducted fairly under these circumstances, they should not be held at all.
Justice Abdul Mobeen Lakho pressed the PTA to tell the sources of threats that prompted the internet shutdown, to which the lawyer responded by stating that they had not been informed about the details of these threats.
The federal government’s lawyer, however, revealed that the shutdown was enacted based on recommendations from provincial governments.
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