2021 - A year of audio and video leaks

The purported audio leak of former CJP Saqib Nisar, video of lawmakers selling votes make it to the list

LAHORE:

Besides Covid-19 variants, 2021 remained a year of leaked videos and audios that charged Pakistan's political atmosphere, often making it to the front pages of the national press.

Judges, politicians and ministers – somehow all of them found themselves in these leaks; though most of them denied the contents of the tapes.

In addition to the controversy that came with them, the leaks also stirred a country-wide debate for laws to regulate social media.

Were they doctored or not is beside the point, as their importance can be gauged by the fact that some of them are still being discussed in media and courts despite some months on.

In this article, we pick out the five most controversial leaks that, though briefly, gave us a break from the monotony of working from home.

Ex-CJP's purported audio leak

This audiotape is at the top for the controversy it garnered. In an audiotape released by senior journalist Ahmad Noorani, former CJP Saqib Nisar can purportedly be heard making comments about former PM Nawaz Sharif’s corruption case. In the tape, he allegedly said Nawaz along with his daughter Maryam Nawaz had to be sentenced whether or not he was guilty.

Zubair's scandal

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and former governor of Sindh, Muhammad Zubair found himself in the news after an alleged sex tape of him with an unidentified woman started making rounds on social media.

A day later, Zubair termed the tape doctored. With all these deepfakes circulating on the internet, this does seem likely.

Senate elections-I

It is an open secret how Senate elections are used by lawmakers to earn big money, the practice is commonly referred to as horse-trading. In February this year, a video of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa MPAs was leaked on social media which showed them purportedly receiving money for voting for the PPP candidates in the 2018 Senate polls.

The video showed a man handing over large sums of money, reportedly Rs20 million, to various K-P Assembly lawmakers from the ruling PTI as well as some other parties. The K-P law minister also lost his portfolio after he appeared in the video.

Senate elections-II

There are hardly any Senate elections in recent history that were not controversial. In the 2021 elections, the opposition’s joint nominee Yousaf Raza Gilani defeated government candidate Hafeez Sheikh, finance minister at the time, on a Senate seat from Islamabad in a surprise victory.

How did the opposition manage to win this seat: Gilani attributed it to his across-the-aisle good contacts, while the government cried foul.

However, in the lead-up to this election, a video of Gilani’s son, Ali Haider Gilani surfaced wherein he was seen telling MNAs how to waste their Senate vote. Haider Gilani admitted that the video was genuine and that he had met with the PTI MNAs to “discuss things related to the polls”.

A plea against the disqualification of Yousaf Raza Gilani was filed subsequently and is currently being heard in court.

Maryam on 'media management'

PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz who is leading the charge against ex-CJP over his leaked audio found herself mired in controversy after two audio clips of hera were leaked to the internet.

She is often fierce about her criticism of the powers-that-be. But in this leaked audio clip, she was heard bragging about her savvy media management skills.

In the audio clip, the PML-N leader could be heard saying, "Look at my media management. Geo News and Dunya News have [ruined them]."

In another clip, Maryam was heard issuing instructions to refuse advertisements to certain TV channels. She had confirmed it was her voice in the clip, while her party spokesperson said Maryam was referring to party ads.