LAHORE – A local sessions court on Saturday once again postponed proceedings in the high-profile defamation case filed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif against the PTI founder, adjourning it until May 24.
The hearing was presided over by Additional District and Sessions Judge Yilmaz Ghani. PM Shehbaz appeared via video link and was cross-examined by the legal counsel representing the former premier.
During the questioning, Shehbaz Sharif firmly repeated his claim that the PTI founder had falsely accused him of offering a Rs10 billion bribe — an allegation he said severely tarnished his reputation. “This wasn’t a small accusation,” the Prime Minister stated, adding that such a televised statement had a more damaging impact than “millions of pamphlets.”
He clarified that he wasn’t aware whether the PTI founder later retracted his statement in any TV interview. Although his name wasn’t directly mentioned, Shehbaz argued that the entire context of the remarks clearly pointed towards him. He also told the court that, to his knowledge, there were no pamphlets, posters, or written materials shared by the PTI founder — but the damage had already been done on live television.
This defamation suit dates back to a 2017 television interview, in which the PTI founder alleged that Shehbaz Sharif had offered him Rs10 billion to stay quiet about the Panama Papers case. According to Shehbaz, not only were these claims completely baseless, but they were also deeply defamatory. Despite serving a legal notice in May 2017, the PTI founder never offered a public apology.
Now, the Prime Minister is seeking compensation — Rs10 billion — for what he describes as the publication and broadcast of damaging and false statements. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for May 24.
