Khadija Shah moves LHC against her conviction

Published
Fashion designer Khadija Shah appears before a Lahore court in this undated photo. — DawnNewsTV/File
Fashion designer Khadija Shah appears before a Lahore court in this undated photo. — DawnNewsTV/File

LAHORE: Fashion de­­signer Khadija Shah has approached the Lahore High Court (LHC), challenging her conviction in a May 9 case.

She claims to have been falsely implicated for political reasons.

Through her Advocate Sameer Khosa, Ms Shah argues that she had no involvement in the torching of a Supreme Court judge’s squad vehicle near Jinnah House during the riots.

She maintained she was not named in the FIR, nor was she implicated throu­­gh supplementary statements.

No identification para­­de was conducted to establish her presence at the scene.

The trial, held inside Kot Lakhpat jail, resulted in 21 acquittals out of 51 accused, with 12 declared proclaimed offenders. Ms Shah was among the 18 convicted, recently sentenced to five years in prison and fined Rs100,000.

The appeal highlights that the prosecution’s case relied solely on her social media activity post-May 9, 2023.

However, the trial court scrutinized her entire online data without legal basis, terming the charges “defective, vague, and unsustainable.

The appeal stresses that the judgement was “assu­mption-based” and lacked credible evidence linking Shah to the alleged offenses.

Her legal team urged the Lahore High Court to set aside the Sept 9 verdict of the anti-terrorism court and acquit her of all charges.

Published in Dawn, September 21st, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

De-escalation efforts
23 Jul, 2026

De-escalation efforts

WHILE the exchange of fire across the Gulf — and the wider Middle East — continues between the US and Iran,...
Time to integrate
23 Jul, 2026

Time to integrate

PAKISTAN remains one of the least regionally integrated economies in Asia. The trade figures for the last fiscal ...
Modi unnerved
23 Jul, 2026

Modi unnerved

DISCONTENT is visible in India. Delhi has been on the boil since last month. As thousands took to the streets ...
Frozen Award
Updated 22 Jul, 2026

Frozen Award

KP’S petition before the Federal Constitutional Court, seeking Rs964bn as the province’s claimed share of tax...
Delayed pricing
22 Jul, 2026

Delayed pricing

THE ongoing delay in making new, approved lifesaving medicines available to patients is a serious lapse in...
Joint prayers
22 Jul, 2026

Joint prayers

IN a country which has witnessed monstrous bouts of sectarian violence, even symbolic gestures by clerics belonging...