Defamation suit: Shehbaz offered money through third person, says Imran

LAHORE: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday submitted his reply in a defamation suit filed against him by Opposition Leader Shehbaz Sharif.

In his replay submitted through counsel Barrister Ali Zafar, he said a man, Omar Farooq, approached him (Imran Khan) with an offer that if he (IK) stopped following the Panama Leaks, he was ready to pay him a large sum of money. He said that the reputation of Shehbaz Sharif may have been affected not because of his statement but owing to some other reason(s).

He said the allegations of Shehbaz Sharif do not fall under the claim of defamation. He said not even a single notice was served on him within 60 days after his statement. He said that Shehbaz Sharif has been a political opponent for two decades. Moreover, he said Shehbaz Sharif has made many statements to defame him, he said. He said that Shehbaz Sharif wants to drag political issues to the courts. His claim was false, baseless and full of distorted facts and it should be dismissed with fine and counsel fee should be collected from the opposition leader, the reply concluded.

Meanwhile, PMLN Information Secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb has asked Imran Khan to apologize to the nation for requesting the court to dismiss a defamation suit filed against him by PMLN President Shehbaz Sharif. In a statement on Wednesday, she said that after the failure of the NAB-Niazi alliance in all courts, Imran is now personally intervening to get cases against him annulled. This, she said, is the true face of Imran’s politics.