DPA/Islamabad

A popular Pakistani news channel has come under fire from right-wing groups and business rivals for airing a programme which they say offended viewers’ religious beliefs.
On a morning show this week the broadcaster Geo staged a mock marriage ceremony of controversial film actress Veena Malik while a religious song played in the background. Channels often arrange the fake marriages of celebrities in a bid to garner higher ratings and revenue.
Critics said the solemn verse did not suit the light-hearted occasion.
“The song is about the marriage of a daughter of Prophet Muhammad and it is highly objectionable to play it. Such songs can only be used in somber and religious settings,” said Mufti Naeem of Karachi.
Geo offered a public apology and sacked the show’s entire team.
“The Geo group has already extended apology to Allah Almighty and initiated action against the team,” said The News International newspaper, owned by Geo.
Shaista Wahdi, the show’s anchor, went on Geo seeking forgiveness from the public and God.
“I am extremely sorry for what happened. May God forgive us,” she said in a recorded message repeatedly aired on the network.
But pleading words have not been enough for industry rivals and conservative groups, who are determined to keep the issue alive.
Nationwide rallies are being held in an attempt to pressure the government to close down the channel and force the police to register a case of blasphemy against Geo.
Dunya TV, a main competitor, reported yesterday that one district judge in Punjab province asked police to open a case. Another district judge in the same province was also said to be considering a similar application of criminal case against Geo’s owner and administration.
The controversy came at the same time Geo is under threat from Pakistan’s powerful military for having accused the chief of the Inter-services Intelligence (ISI) spy agency of ordering an attack by gunmen in Karachi last month on the network’s lead anchorman, Hamid Mir.
The military formally requested the country’s official media watchdog, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory, to shutter the station for defaming the armed forces.
But observers say anti-Geo protesters, who are loudly supporting the military’s measures, are also using the row to air their grievances at the actress involved in the mock marriage.
Veena Malik came under fierce criticism for posing nude in 2011 for India’s FHM magazine sporting the initials of Pakistan’s spy agency - ISI - on her arm.
It’s not only religious groups and the military who are up in arms against the broadcaster, but also cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, who accused Malik of undermining national interests.
“Geo should tell the people about foreign funding it gets,” he said at a news conference in Islamabad yesterday.
Khan also accused the channel for conspiring against his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party during the 2013 election in which the party suffered significant losses in parliament.
Geo has reacted angrily to his allegations and challenged Khan for a live debate.
The government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has kept its silence over the controversy and, despite the outcry and threat of criminal investigations, Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid said that the channel will not be closed.