The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has recently declared the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority’s (PEMRA) demand for Rs. 32 billion from 23 television channels illegal, as reported by TechJuice, ProPakistani, and Profit by Pakistan Today. This decision, issued by Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, concluded a prolonged legal battle initiated in March 2022 when PEMRA sought to collect five percent of the channels’ annual advertisement income. The court's 29-page ruling emphasized that PEMRA failed to establish a reasonable connection between the levy and its regulatory expenses, rendering the fee unlawful. The judgment highlighted that 'most of the expenses listed in PEMRA’s report could not be directly linked to the supervision or regulatory actions related to licensed broadcasting entities' (ProPakistani). The court also noted that regulatory fees must be directly related to the administrative framework under which licenses are issued and regulated, and if used primarily for revenue generation or unrelated development projects, they lose their legal basis.