PESHAWAR: Member of the former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Bibi Fauzia on Thursday filed a defamation suit with the Peshawar district and sessions judge against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan over the charge of horse-trading in the Senate elections.

The suit meant for the recovery of Rs5 billion as damages from the PTI chief was assigned to additional district and sessions judge Shah Waliullah Hamid Hashmi, who fixed preliminary hearing into it for June 27.

The former MPA filed the suit under the Defamation Ordinance, 2002, through lawyer Syed Ghufranullah Shah.

She said she had followed the PTI’s directions in the March 2 Senate elections by voting for the candidates named by it for general and reserved seats.

Ms Fauzia said after the elections, the PTI chief began ‘uttering, spreading and resorting to publication, communication and circulation of maliciously false, baseless and unfounded oral statements and representation’ against her.

She said the PTI chief accused her of selling vote for money through electronic, print and social media.

The former lawmaker said she denied the charge by taking oath on the Holy Quran and replied to the show cause notice issued by the PTI Secretariat within the stipulated time.

She said she asked Imran Khan of holding an ‘open inquiry’ into the matter, provide her with an opportunity of hearing, and confront her with all witnesses and material against her.

Ms Fauzia however said the PTI chief failed to hold the sought-after inquiry and prove the horse-trading charge against her.

She claimed that the defamatory statement of the PTI chief had damaged her political, social and family life besides destroying her personality.

“I served a legal notice on Imran Khan under Section 8 of the Defamation Ordinance asking him to tender an apology but he failed to respond to it,” she said.

The former MPA said she was a law-abiding citizen, belonged to a noble family, enjoyed excellent reputation both in political and social circles, and had a successful career in politics.

Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2018