View about a female journalist: Bound to be harassed if she invades male space, says Imran

ISLAMABAD: PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Tuesday issued an inappropriate statement against a leading female journalist, implying that she was asking to be trolled and harassed as she “invades male-dominated spaces” while covering political rallies, reports Geo News.

His statement came during a conversation with delegations of the National Press Club and the Rawalpindi Islamabad Union of Journalists (RIUJ) in the federal capital when a question was asked about women journalists being harassed at PTI’s jalsas.

In response, Khan said that he would issue special instructions for his supporters in this regard, but he targeted journalist Gharida Farooqui and said: “If she would invade male-dominated spaces, then she is bound to be harassed,” implying that the journalist is “asking for it.”

When Khan was asked why he accused journalists of being paid (lifafa journalists), he said that so far, he has only used the term for senior journalist Saleem Safi, who has been a known critic of the PTI.

Regarding social media trolls, Khan said that he cannot stop them as they were not under anyone’s control. He also said that he has only filed a case against Najam Sethi and no other journalist, adding that the case against Sethi was still in process. When questioned about inviting journalists of his choice to his press conferences, Khan maintained that he “does not know who stops some news outlets from covering his pressers.”