LAHORE:A sessions court in Lahore on Tuesday announced its verdict in a defamation case filed by singer Ali Zafar against Meesha Shafi, ordering the latter to pay Rs5 million in damages, reports Geo News.
Additional Sessions Judge Asif Hayat delivered the reserved judgement, bringing to a close the high-profile case. Zafar had filed a defamation suit in 2018 seeking Rs1 billion in damages after Meesha accused him of sexual harassment — allegations he consistently denied.
The suit was filed under the Defamation Ordinance 2002. In the notice, the singer claimed Meesha damaged his reputation through false allegations of sexual harassment. In a two-page short verdict, the court declared Meesha's tweet dated April 19, 2018, and her April 21 interview "false, defamatory and injurious imputations" against Zafar, "[...] whereby allegations of sexual harassment of a physical nature were levelled, which have not been proved to be true or made for public good, and thus constitute actionable defamation." The sessions court also barred Meesha from posting tweets related to the harassment allegations. The judge directed the parties to appear before the court on May 4 to pay the compensation amount.
Zafar was represented by lawyer Umar Tariq Gill, while Meesha was represented by lawyer Saqib Jilani. During the court proceedings, statements of 20 witnesses were recorded during the trial. The case spanned 284 hearings and saw the transfer of nine judges over the course of litigation. Meanwhile, Meesha's lawyer told the media that the sessions court's verdict will be challenged in the high court. "We are currently reviewing the certified copy of the verdict," he added.
