Meesha Shafi summoned over “defamation” suit
A judicial magistrate of the Lahore sessions court ordered summons on Wednesday, December 23, for singer Meesha Shafi, actress Iffat Omar, and six others on a January 18 hearing on an alleged defamation suit filed against them by singer and actor Ali Zafar.
In a November 2018 complaint filed with the FIA’s Cyber Crime Wing, Zafar claimed that he was being targeted by Shafi and her accomplices in an online ‘smear campaign’. He further alleged that multiple sockpuppet accounts were created to run the #MeToo hashtag against him. In April 2018, Shafi had accused Zafar of sexual harassment on Twitter. Omar, in a testimony recorded last year, stated that the songstress had told her and her mother of Zafar’s behaviour weeks before she made the allegations.
In September, an FIR was issued by a special court of the FIA against Meesha Shafi and seven others nominated by Ali Zafar.
Seven held for child marriage in Chitral
Chitral police apprehend seven men in connection to the marriage of an eleven-year-old girl with a 29-year-old-man in the Laspur area of Chitral.
According to the girl’s father, the ‘bridegroom’ was a relative and often frequented their house. Some two to three days ago, his daughter went missing from their home when the prime accused coerced and lure her to his residence. A formal marriage ceremony was held in a nearby village.
A case was registered against the abductors under the Child Marriage Act – prime accused Shakoor Ahmad, the nikahkhawan Ali Ahmed, and witnesses Afiat, Ali Bad, Garin, Manzoor, and Sher Guli were sent on remand by a local court.
The girl’s father said that although she had agreed to the marriage of her ‘free will’, she was too young to give consent.
Khawaja Sara tortured, raped in Chunian
A shocking video of a Khawaja Sara hung upside down by her feet and beaten with sticks by a group of men emerged on social media. According to Kasur police, the incident occurred some two months back in the Allahabad area of Chunian tehsil – the accused themselves had recorded and distributed the clip online.
The victim in her complaint to the City police station stated that she had been hired to perform at a function. However, she was held captive, repeatedly gang-raped, and tortured for three days by the suspects, who are influentials in the area. She further claimed that after registering her case, the City police eventually threw out her case. Kasur DPO Imran Kishwar ordered a fresh inquiry into the case upon the victim’s request – he stated that the accused were released after both parties managed to reconcile.