KARACHI, Dec 21: The district and session court of Additional District and Sessions Judge, Ghulam Mustafa Memon, on Thursday indicted three journalists in a defamation case filed by a leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) under the controversial Pakistani Criminal Defamation Law.

The defamation suit was filed last year by Anwar Alam of MQM, a partner of the ruling coalition, against the Editor of The Star, Kamal Majidullah, Chief Correspondent Syed Saleem Shahzad and crime reporter Ralph D’ Cruz. The Star suspended publication on Dec 2, 2006.

The newspaper ran a title story on the front page last year about links between underworld mafia king pin, the late Shoaib Khan, and members of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement. Shoaib Khan was also a front man for Dawood Ibrahim, who is wanted by the US State Department.—Online