ISLAMABAD: Condemning the circulation of a lewd deepfake video targeting the information minister of Punjab, women lawmakers and other government officials on Friday announced the initiation of a legal battle against those behind the act.

The announcement came at a press conference addressed by Minister of State for IT Shaza Fatima Khawaja, PM’s aide on climate change Romina Khurshid Alam, MNAs Shaista Pervaiz Malik, Syeda Nosheen Iftikhar and others.

A couple of days ago, screenshots from a blurry video were circulated on social media platforms, with several pro-PTI accounts linking it to Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari.

The clip was debunked as being a ‘deepfake’ by fact-checking platform iVerify, which reported that the footage was taken from a pornographic video and the minister’s face was superimposed onto it.

IT minister points finger at PTI; pledges to pursue case through FIA

Ms Bokhari has already filed a petition before the Lahore High Court against those spreading the video.

On Friday, the IT minister said the government had obtained the original video and all relevant information, thanking social media platforms for removing the offending content.

She declared that the government would pursue the case effectively and forcefully through the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

Ms Khawaja accused the PTI of being behind the act, saying that they had used deepfake technology to target Ms Bokhari as part of a well-thought-out conspiracy.

Speaking on the occasion, Romina Khurshid Alam said that women serving in politics, media and all other fields of society deserved great respect, adding that the PML-N had pledged to stay away from malicious smear campaigns against women politicians.

MNA Shaista Pervaiz Malik said that no society allows disrespect of women and their use as a tool for nasty politics, calling for a ‘red line’ for all to avoid using foul language and crooked political gimmicks against women.

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2024