ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb has said the incumbent government does not believe in any restriction on the freedom of expression.

She was speaking at the Senate Standing Committee for Information and Broadcasting, which met here in Islamabad on Wednesday with its Chairman Senator Faisal Javed in the chair. The Minister for Information said no channel, programme or newspaper will be closed. She, however, called for practical steps to curb fake news in the country.

She said fake news was run about Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to Saudi Arabia. Marriyum Aurangzeb said Shehbaz Sharif as the chief minister of Punjab had paid all the expenses of his foreign tours from his own pocket.

She said the Prime Minister will also bear expenses of his upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia. Chairman Pakistan Electronic Regulatory Authority briefed the committee that PEMRA has issued no directions to close any channel. Officials of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting apprised the committee about “Digital Radio Migration” project.