LAHORE (Kashmir English): The Sessions Court Lahore has ruled in favour of singer Ali Zafar in his defamation lawsuit against singer Meesha Shafi, which spanned over eight years, and ordered her to pay Rs5 million in damages.
In 2018, Ali Zafar, through his counsel Rana Intizar, filed a defamation claim of Rs1 billion in damages against Shafi for making allegations of sexual harassment.
In a two-page short verdict, Additional Sessions Judge Asif Hayat ruled that Meesha’s allegations against Zafar were defamatory and upheld Ali Zafar’s claim.
The court also stopped Meesha Shafi from posting on social media regarding the harassment.
Throughout the eight years of case proceedings, nine judges were changed, and 283 hearings were held. A total of 20 witnesses were called, and their statements were recorded.
During the final session, both sides’ legal teams presented their closing arguments.
Ali Zafar vs Meesha Shafi case verdict
In a verdict, the court declared Shafi’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 plaintiff is held entitled to compensatory damages on account of injury to reputation, dignity, and mental anguish,” the court verdict stated.
“However, the claim of special damages has not been proved through cogent and reliable evidence. Accordingly, a sum of Rs5,000,000/- (Rupees five Million) is awarded to the plaintiff as general damages only, recoverable from the defendant.”
The verdict read, “The defendant is further permanently restrained from repeating, publishing, or causing to be published, directly or indirectly, the aforesaid defamatory allegations of sexual harassment of a physical nature against the plaintiff, in any form of media, including print, electronic, or social media.”
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 Shafi was represented by lawyer Saqib Jilani.
