Published 08 Sep, 2017 04:07pm

Hamza Ali Abbasi is back on Pemra's bad side for his remarks about Pakistani passports

The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) and Hamza Ali Abbasi/BOL News don't exactly have the best relationship.

And it seems like there's trouble yet again.

Read: #ISupportHamzaAliAbbasi: Twitter is furious about PEMRA's ban on the Ramazan host

Pemra has issued a notice to the private television channel for its show HQ Debate, in which Abbasi, who hosts the show, made "derogatory remarks about Pakistani passport."

Pemra shares that the channel violated their code of conduct

The authority states that "airing of such derogatory remarks can spread hatred and provoke anti-Pakistani sentiments". Other than that, the media watchdog also said that the show has also been found in violation of several clauses of the PEMRA Ordinance 2002 as amended by PEMRA (Amendment) Act 2007 and Electronic Media Code of Conduct 2015.

The authority has directed the management of the TV channel to furnish a reply within a week for the violation. Additionally, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the channel has also been called by PEMRA to appear for a personal hearing before the authority’s committee on or before 13 September. If the channel fails to comply with their demands, Pemra has indicated that they may take legal action.

So what exactly did the actor say to get on the authority's bad side?

It all started amidst an intense discussion Abbasi was having with PML-N’s Jan Achakzai regarding Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, during which he implied that a Pakistani passport isn't really the most valuable piece of paper to have.

We kinda get it a little, especially every time we need to apply for a visa!

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