(Ordinance LVI of 2002)
[1 October, 2002]
WHEREAS it is expedient to make provisions in respect of defamation
and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto;
AND WHEREAS, the President is satisfied that circumstances exist which
render it necessary to take immediate action;
NOW,
THEREFORE, in pursuance
of the Proclamation of Emergency of the fourteenth day of October, 1999, and
the Provisional Constitution Order No.1 of 1999, read with the Provisional
Constitution (Amendment) Order No.9 of 1999, and in exercise of all powers
enabling him in that behalf, the President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan is
pleased to make and promulgate the following Ordinance:---
1. Short title,
extent and commencement.– (1) This
Ordinance may be called the Defamation Ordinance, 2002.
(3) It shall come in to force at once.
2. Definitions.– In this Ordinance, unless there is anything repugnant in
the subject or context,---
(b) “Broadcasting”
means the dissemination of writings, signs, signals, pictures and sounds of all
kinds, including any electronic device, intended to be received by the public
either directly or through the medium of relay stations, by means of–
(i) a form of wireless radio-electric
communication utilizing Hertzian waves, including radio telegraph and
radiotelephone, or
(ii) cables, computers, wires, fibre-optic linkages or laser beams, and
“broadcast” has a corresponding meaning;
(c) “editor”
means a person or operator having editorial or, equivalent responsibility for
the content of the statement or the decision to publish or circulate it;
[6][6][(d) “newspaper”
means a paper containing public news, intelligence or occurrences or remarks or
observations or containing only, or principally, advertisements, printed for
distribution to the public and published periodically, or in parts or number,
and includes such other periodical works as the Government may, by notification
in the official Gazette, declare to be newspaper;]
[7][7][(dd) “Originator”
means the initiator of the defamatory statement or any other defamatory act;]
(e) “Publication”
means the communication of the words to at least one person other than the
person defamed and includes a newspaper or broadcast through the internet or
other media; and
(f) “Publisher” means a commercial publisher, that
is, a person whose business is issuing material to the public, or a section of
public, who issues material containing the statement in the course of that
business.
3. Defamation.– (1) Any wrongful act or publication or circulation of a false
statement or representation made orally or in written or visual form which
injures the reputation of a person, tends to lower him in the estimation of
others or tends to reduce him to ridicule, unjust criticism, dislike, contempt
or hatred shall be actionable as defamation.
(2) Defamation is of two forms, namely:---
(i) Slander;
and
(ii) Libel.
(3) Any false oral statement or
representation that amounts to defamation shall be actionable as slander.
(4) Any false written, documentary or visual
statement or representation made either by ordinary form or expression or by
electronic or other modern means of devices that amounts to defamation shall be
actionable as libel.
4. Defamation
Actionable.– The publication of defamatory
matter is an actionable wrong with out proof of special damage to the person
defamed and where defamation is proved, damage shall be presumed.
5. Defences.– In defamation proceedings a person has a defence if he shows
that,---
(a) he
was not the author, editor, publisher or printer of the statement complained
of;
(b) the
matter commented on is fair and in the public interest and is an expression of
opinion and not an assertion of fact and was published in good faith;
(c) it
is based on truth and was made for the public good;
(d) assent
was given for the publication by the plaintiff;
(e) offer
to tender a proper apology and publish the same was made by the defendant but
was refused by the plaintiff;
(f) an
offer to print or publish a contradiction or denial in the same manner and with
the same prominence was made but was refused by the plaintiff;
(g) the
matter complained of was privileged communication such as between lawyer and
client or between persons having fiduciary relations; and
(h) the
matter is converted by absolute or qualified privilege.
6. Absolute
privilege.– Any
publication of statement made in the Federal or Provincial Legislatures,
reports, papers, notes and proceedings ordered to be published by either House
of the Parliament or by the Provincial Assemblies, or relating to judicial
proceedings ordered to be published by the court or any report, note or matter
written or published by or under the authority of Government, shall have the
protection of absolute privilege.
Explanation.–
In this section legislature includes a local legislature and Court includes any
Tribunal or body exercising the judicial powers.
7. Qualified
privilege.– Any fair and
accurate publication of parliamentary proceedings, or judicial proceedings
which the public may attend and statements made to the proper authorities in
order to procure the redress of public grievances shall have the protection of
qualified privilege.
8. Notice
of Action.– No action lies
unless the plaintiff has, within two months after the publication of the
defamatory matter has come to his notice or knowledge, given to the defendant,
fourteen days notice in writing of his intention to bring an action, specifying
the defamatory matter complained of.
9. Remedies.– Where defamation shall be proved to
have occurred, the Court may pass order directing the defendant to tender an
apology, if acceptable to the plaintiff, and publish the same in similar manner
and with the same prominence as the defamatory statement made and pay
reasonable compensatory damages as general damages with a minimum of
Rs.50,000/- (Rupees fifty thousands) [8][8][* * *] and in addition thereto, any special damage incurred that is
proved by the plaintiff to the satisfaction of the Court[9][9][:]
[10][10][Provided that in case of the originator the minimum compensatory
damages as general damages shall be three hundred thousand rupees.]
10. Code
of Civil Procedure and Qanun-e-Shahadat Order to Apply.– The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (V
of 1908) and the Qanun-e-Shahadat Order, 1984 (P.O. No.10 of 1984) shall mutatis
mutandis, apply to the proceedings under this Ordinance.
11. Ordinance not
to prejudice action for criminal defamation.–
Nothing in this Ordinance shall prejudice any action for criminal libel or
slander under any law for time being in force.
12. Limitation of
actions.– An action against,---
(a) an
author, editor, proprietor or publisher of a newspaper,
(b) the
owner of a broadcasting station,
(c) an
officer, servant or employee of the news paper or broadcasting station; or
(d) any
other person;
for defamation
contained in the newspaper or broadcast from the station or its publication
otherwise shall be taken within six months after the publication of the
defamatory matter came to the notice or knowledge of the person defamed.
[11][11][13. Trial of Cases.– The District Court shall have the jurisdiction to try the
cases under this ordinance.]
14. Court to
decide the cases expeditiously.–
The Court shall decide a case under this Ordinance within a period of [12][12][ninety days].
[13][13][15. Appeal.– An appeal against the final decision and decree of the
Court shall lie to the High Court within thirty days and the High Court shall
decide the appeal within sixty days:---
Provided
that no appeal shall lie against an interlocutory order of the Court.]
16. Power to make rules.–
The [14][14][*
* *] Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, make rules to
carry out the purpose of this Ordinance.
[1][1]In pursuance of the Proclamation
of Emergency of the fourteenth day of October, 1999, and the Provisional Constitution Order
No.1 of 1999, read with the Provisional Constitution (Amendment) Order No.9 of
1999, and in exercise of all powers enabling him in that behalf, the President
of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan promulgated this Ordinance which was published
in the Gazette of Pakistan, Extraordinary, 1st October, 2002.
This Ordinance was originally in the
Federal ambit, however, the subject on which this law was enacted devolved to
the provinces by virtue of 18th Amendment in the Constitution, hence it was
adapted, with amendments, for the province of the Punjab by the Defamation
(Amendment) Act 2012 (VIII of 2012).
[2][2]Substituted
by the Defamation (Amendment) Act 2012 (VIII of 2012).
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