Fawad Says Govt to file criminal case against Justice Wajihuddin

By Muhammad JuniadPublished On 05 Jan 2023

Federal Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry has said the government has decided to file a criminal defamation case against Justice (retd) Wajihuddin Ahmed who earlier this week claimed that Jahangir Tareen used to pay Rs5 million per month to run Imran Khan’s household expenses.

Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Chauhdry said Tareen has denied the allegations leveled by Wajihuddin.

Chaudhry said media outlets should not have aired the allegations from Wajihuddin without first corroborating with Tareen.

He claimed that some of the TV channels had launched a campaign on the basis of Wajihuddin’s statement.

He said the government would also serve notices on those TV channels. 

Chaudhry said the reputation of the prime minister was targeted in this campaign and a violation of article 9 of the Constitution of Pakistan was seen.

The federal minister stressed that there should be a discussion on new legislation about defamation and courts should also take notice.

He said in the absence of “strict” laws fake news would more and more weaken the system of the country.

Chaudhry urged the judiciary to set up special benches at district and high court levels to stem defamation campaigns against state institutions and important figures. “The trend by media outlets to slander people should stop now,” he said.

Chaudhry said media freedom was being misused.

He said mainstream media and social media were maligning civil service officers, generals, and judges under a sustained campaign.

The minister said that Imran Khan had never used the national exchequer for personal gains. Imran Khan was given several plots during his cricketing career as rewards for his wins and if he had received only 50 percent of the money from them, he would have been a billionaire, but he did not do that, Chaudhry said.

Referring to old claims by TV anchor Najam Sethi, Chauhdry said that lies were told about Imran Khan’s family life and his Bani Gala residence.

The Allegations

Wajihuddin Ahmed quit the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) five years ago after developing serious differences with Imran Khan over party elections.

He appeared on the program and claimed that the notion that Imran Khan is an honest man was misleading.

Tareen, who fell out with Khan after government agencies conducted raids against his businesses, refuted Wajihuddin’s claim in a tweet.