LAHORE: A district and sessions court on Monday issued a fresh notice to PTI chief Imran Khan on a Rs10bn suit for damages filed by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif under Defamation Ordinance 2002 as the defendant failed to respond to court’s earlier notice.

As Additional District and Sessions Judge Azfar Sultan resumed hearing, it was informed that the notice issued earlier had been served on Imran Khan through Shahbaz Ahmad of the PTI and delivered to the address of the defendant through courier. However, the judge issued a fresh notice to the PTI chief and sought his reply by Sept 9.

The suit filed through Advocate Mustafa Ramday stated the defendant in his speech in April uttered false and malicious statements that the plaintiff (Shahbaz) offered him Rs10bn through a common friend in exchange of withdrawing the Panama case then pending before the Supreme Court.

It said the plaintiff served a legal notice to the defendant asking him to tender a proper apology within 14 days through print and electronic media. However, the defendant failed to do so and the plaintiff was left with no option but to approach the court for the recovery of damages. It was pleaded in the suit that the baseless and defamatory statements by the defendant were widely circulated by media, lowered the integrity of the plaintiff and caused him extreme mental torture, agony and anxiety.

The court had been asked to issue a decree for the recovery of Rs10bn as compensation for the publication of defamatory content in favour of the plaintiff.

Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2017