Court orders singer to pay Rs5m in defamation suit

A sessions court in Lahore has ruled in favour of singer and actor Ali Zafar in a long-running defamation suit against model and actress Meesha Shafi, ordering her to pay Rs5 million in damages.

Additional Sessions Judge Asif Hayat announced the reserved verdict on Tuesday, decreeing the suit in favour of the plaintiff.

The judgment was delivered a day after both parties concluded their final arguments, following which the court had reserved its decision.

The case, originally filed in 2018, sought damages amounting to Rs1 billion.

However, the court partially allowed the claim and awarded Rs5 million to Ali Zafar.

According to court records, the proceedings extended over nearly eight years, during which nine different judges presided over the case at various stages.

A total of 283 hearings were conducted, and statements from 20 witnesses were recorded before the final verdict was reached.

The defamation suit was filed by Ali Zafar after Meesha Shafi publicly accused him of sexual harassment in April 2018 through social media.

Zafar denied the allegations, describing them as false and defamatory, and maintained that the claims had caused significant damage to his professional reputation, career, and personal life.

The case remained under prolonged litigation for several years, drawing widespread public and media attention, before being decided by the sessions court this week.