Defamation Ordinance 2002 and Contempt of Court Act 1976 by Zia Ullah

1. Defamation ordinance
2002
Zia ullah
MS 3

2. definition
• Defamation is that which tends to injure
reputation , to diminish the esteem, respect,
goodwill or confidence in which the plaintiff is
held, or to excite adverse, derogatory or
unpleasant feelings or opinions against him.
• Statement which exposes person to contempt,
hatred or humiliation. The unprivileged
publication of false statements which naturally
and proximately result in injury to another

3. • A communication is defamatory if it tends so
to harm the reputation of another as to lower
him in the estimation of the community or to
deter third persons from associating or
dealing with him

4. According to section 3 of the defamation ordinance 2002
• Any wrongful act or publication or circulation
of a false statement or representation made
orally/written/visual form which injures the
reputation of a person, tends to lower him in
the estimation of others or tends to reduce
him to unjust criticism, dislike, contempt or
hatred shall be actionable as defamation.

5. Defamation is of two forms
• any false oral statement or representation that
amounts to defamation shall be actionable as
slander.
• Any false written documentary or visual
statement made either by ordinary form or
expression or by electronic or other modern
means or devices that amounts to defamation
shall be actionable as libel

6. • Section 4,Publication of defamatory matter is
not actable without proof of special damage
to the person defamed
• section 5,He was not the author , editor,
publisher or printer of the statement
complained of.It is based on truth and was
made for public good.Assent was given for
publication by the plaintiff

7. • Section 6,Certain acts of the government does not come
within the ambit of defamation , these are called absolute
privileges
• Section 8 prescribes that notice of action must be given by
the plaintiff to the defendant before any legal action would be
taken by the plaintiff against the defendant; no action lies
unless the plaintiff has , within two months after the
publication of the defamatory matter has come to this 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

8. • Section 15, An appeal against the final
decision and decree of the court shall lie to
the high court within 30 days and the high
court shall decide the appeal within sixty days

9. Contemp of court act 1976
• Whoever disobeys or disregards any order, direction or
process of a court, which he is legally bound to obey;
or commits a willful breach of a valid undertaking given
to a court; or does anything which is intended to or
tends to bring the authority of a court or the
administration of law into disrespect or disrepute, or to
interfere with or obstruct or interrupt or prejudice the
process of law or the due course of any judicial
proceedings, or to lower the authority of a court or
scandalize a judge in relation to his office, or to disturb
the order or decorum of a court, is said to commit "
contempt of court "

10. procedur for Sureme Court and high
court
• Whenever it appears to the Supreme Court or a
High Court that there is sufficient ground for
believing that a person has committed contempt
of court and that it is necessary in the interest of
effective administration of justice to proceed
against him.it shall made an order in writing to
that effect setting forth the substance of the
charge against the accused, and, unless he is
present in court, shall require by means of an
appropriate process that he appear or be brought
before it to answer the charge

11. Jurisdiction
• A High Court or the Supreme Court, on its own
information or on information laid before it by
any person, may take cognizance of an alleged
commission of contempt of the court
• Punishment
• Whoever commits contempt of court or abets the
commission of contempt of court may be
punished with simple imprisonment for a term
which may extend to six months, or with fine
which may extend to five thousand rupees, or
with both

12. refrences
• http://www.na.gov.pk/uploads/documents/14
93182393_204.pdf
• http://www.senate.gov.pk/uploads/document
s/1347362846_193.pdf
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contempt_of_c
ourt