Ali Zafar Accused of Harassing Another Woman, Claiming Rs 50 Crore Damages
Posted on Jan 14, 2021
Leading Pakistani singer and actor Ali Zafar, who is facing harassment charges by singer Meesha Shafi, was also accused of sexual harassment by a woman named Leena Ghani.
A single bench of the Sindh High Court comprising Justice Syed Ahsan Azhar Rizvi issued notice to Ali Zafar on January 25 through District and Sessions Judge Lahore to file a reply. Make-up artist Leena Ghani accused Ali Zafar of allegedly defaming her on social media. He said in the claim filed by his lawyer that Ali Zafar's retweet of December 20, 2020, and his tweet of December 22 were based on lies.
After years of personal and legal attacks by Mr. Zafar, I have decided to stand up for myself and fight back.
— Leena (@Leena_Ghani) January 13, 2021
They said go to the courts. So I did. #metoo #TimesUp pic.twitter.com/XSRyaMuTLB
The petitioner said that Ali Zafar's tweets about him should be declared malicious. Leena Ghani said that in both tweets and retweets it was claimed that Leena Ghani had a hand in the campaign against Ali Zafar. The petition said the two tweets were intended to tarnish Ghani's image and discredit him in the eyes of the public. He also alleged that Ali Zafar had harassed him for the first time during a fashion event in London in 2014 and in June 2014, he had spoken obscenely twice.
According to the petitioner, he had also informed his sister and friends in this regard. According to the request, Ali Zafar also offered a job in a very big company in July 2014, which he politely refused. The petition said that 2018 well-known singer Meesha Shafi had also accused Ali Zafar of harassment and had also filed a harassment case against him. He asked the court to declare that the petitioner against Ali Zafar was not part of any online campaign.
It's time we fight back and create legal precedence that protects all women against sexual harassment and defamation. pic.twitter.com/i5aqvkoQRF
— Leena (@Leena_Ghani) January 13, 2021
The petitioner said that Ali Zafar should be barred from publishing content and news against him on online and TV channels, including social media. At the same time, the petition stated that it was feared that such material and news would be used to defame them. In her petition, Leena Ghani also stated that she has nothing to do with singer Meesha Shafi.
The petitioner requested the court to get a compensation of Rs. 50 crore from Ali Zafar for torturing him mentally. Later, the court issued a notice to Ali Zafar on the Rs 500 million damages filed against him for allegedly defaming female make-up artist Leena Ghani on social media. It may be recalled that Meesha Shafi had accused Ali Zafar of sexual harassment through his tweet in July 2018, which was denied by Ali Zafar.
I have moved the court to stop Mr. Zafar and his army of trolls from harassing me further.
— Leena (@Leena_Ghani) January 13, 2021
Across the board female activists, journalists and lawyers are being targeted for being vocal and speaking up on women based issues, especially the MeToo movement. pic.twitter.com/33Tx45QnrP
The two have also filed compensation claims against each other on the issue and Ali Zafar's defamation case has been pending for the last two years. Ali Zafar had also filed a petition in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) against Meesha Shafi and other women for conducting a false campaign, on which the FIA recently stated that according to their investigation, Ali Zafar The FIA had also requested the trial court to take legal action against Meesha Shafi and others, including Leena Ghani.
The case of sexual harassment of Meesha Shafi and Ali Zafar has not been decided even after two and a half years and other important political and social personalities including showbiz personalities seem to be divided on their issue.
