‘Unconditional apology on TV, print and social media’: PPP sends Rs10 bn legal notice to Khan

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has sent a legal notice to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for levelling “baseless allegations” against former President Asif Ali Zardari.

“You are…. called upon to render unconditional apology from our client, on television, print and social media, within 14 (fourteen) days from the receipt of this notice, failing whereof, our client shall be constrained to institute appropriate legal proceedings against you, civil as well as criminal, before the competent courts of law and forums of Pakistan as well as of England, including but not limited to Suit for Damages for Rs.10,000,000,000/- (Rupees ten billion Only) at your risk as to cost and consequences,” said the notice.

The notice contends that the PTI chief through his “baseless accusations” tried to create a link between Zardari and terrorist organisations “blindly disregarding the fact that our client and his party has remained the victim of terrorism”.

The notice also reads that the PTI chief through his “defamatory actions” caused “severe agony, mental stress and loss of reputation” to the PPP co-chairperson.

Imran Khan had alleged on Friday, January 27, in a televised speech, that Zardari was plotting and financing an assassination attempt for which the ex-president had hired terrorists.

Khan had claimed that four people orchestrated a plan “behind closed doors” to assassinate him.

“I got to know about it and then I recorded a video explaining the attack. In a public rally, I announced that I would release the video if something happened to me. They stepped back after this,” said Khan.

Without naming anyone again, Khan said that another plan was made to have me killed by a religious extremist — hinting towards the November 3, 2022, Wazirabad attack, where he was shot in the legs and is still recovering from his injuries.

“Now, there’s a Plan C. Asif Zardari is behind it. He has amassed a lot of money through corruption, invested that money with terrorists and hired a militant organisation.”