This is like the 3rd or 4th time in as many months that the Supreme Court has asked the media, especially the Geo / Jang/ News group to apologise for printing lies about the judiciary.
Just shows people should not believe everything written or reported by certain sections of the Pak media.
Reporter apologises to SC for ‘baseless report’
The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday reprimanded a reporter who filed a story claiming that the government was preparing misconduct references against four more judges of the apex court. A 13-member full court, which is hearing the petition of the chief justice of Pakistan challenging the presidential reference against him, took suo motu notice of the story and summoned the reporter, who tendered an unconditional apology for filing the “baseless and unauthentic” story. The court accepted the apology of Saleh Zaafir, a reporter for Jang and The News, but issued him a stern warning. The bench ordered the two newspapers to publish Zaafir’s apology on their front pages.
**When the head of the bench, Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday, asked the reporter if he had any proof as to the authenticity of his story, Zaafir admitted he did not and apologised. He said he would not commit the same mistake in future if were forgiven this time. **
The court passed the following order, asking journalists to print it verbatim:
“Muhammad Saleh Zaafir, editor special reporting, of daily Jang and The News, has entered appearance on our call, in connection with the news items appearing in the Rawalpindi edition of the daily Jang and the daily The News of 11th June, 2007, regarding some references being made against four senior honourable judges of this court who, presumably also happen to be members of this bench. The said news item appeared to be open to further serious exception because such a news item had been published, more than boldly, on the front pages of the said two newspapers on the day when this bench was expected to announce its decision on the maintainability of the petitions filed in this court questioning the presidential reference against the honourable chief justice of Pakistan. It may be added that certain insinuations had been made in the said news items pointing towards some alleged misconduct committed by the four un-named senior judges of this court. Muhammad Saleh Zaafir, who is the reporter of the said news items, when confronted with the same, frankly and honestly conceded that he had made no effort to verify the veracity of the allegations levelled in the said news items before publishing the same nor did he have any proof in support of the contents thereof. He, however, added at the very outset that he had utmost regards and respect for not only the said honourable judges of this court but for the entire judiciary; that he did not have even an iota of doubt about their integrity and character and that reporting the said news items was a grave mistake on his part. He tendered verbal unconditional apologies in open court and also placed on record his statement to the above noted effect, in writing. The regrets offered by Muhammad Saleh Zaafir, reporter/editor, appear to be sincere and the remorse expressed by him appears to be genuine. In this view of the matter, we do not consider it necessary to proceed with the matter any further except warning him to be careful in future. On our call, Muhammad Afzal Butt, President of the Rawalpindi-Islamabad Union of Journalists, also entered appearance for assistance. The reporting of the proceedings which have taken place in court in connection with the matter in question shall be made only to the extent that the apology tendered by the said Muhammad Saleh Zaafir shall be published in full and so would be published this order passed thereon. The daily Jang and the daily The News which had published the news items in question, shall publish the said apology and this order, prominently, on their front pages. Muhammad Saleh Zaafir undertakes to do the same and has been ordered accordingly.”
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\06\13\story_13-6-2007_pg7_3
