PM Shehbaz Sharif's legal notice accepted in Rs10 billion defamation case
Pakistan
Court directs the PML-N leader to appear via video link on July 18
LAHORE (Muhammad Ashfaq) – A sessions court in Lahore has accepted Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s request to make his legal notice part of the record in the Rs10 billion defamation case filed against PTI founder Imran Khan.
The case stems from allegations made by the PTI founder, accusing the prime minister of offering a bribe related to the Panama Papers scandal. PM Shehbaz Sharif responded by issuing a legal notice, which he has now requested the court to include officially in the proceedings.
Additional Sessions Judge Yilmaz Ghani issued a five-page written order accepting the request and directed PM Shehbaz to appear via video link for cross-examination on July 18 at 10 AM.
Read also: Court adjourns Rs10bn defamation case against PTI founder till June 2
In his petition, the prime minister stated that the allegations were false and damaging. His legal team argued that the notice should be part of the record to support the claim of reputational harm.
PTI legal team objects
The PTI founder’s lawyers opposed the move, claiming the legal notice did not meet the requirements under Section 8 of the applicable defamation law and should therefore be excluded.
Despite the objections, the court ruled in favour of admitting the notice, stating both parties must have equal opportunity to present evidence for justice to be served.
