- Punjab minister sought court to order putting Falak Javed’s name on ECL, FIA probe to determine authenticity of an alleged video
LAHORE: Lahore High Court Chief Justice Aalia Neelam on Thursday directed Punjab Minister for Information and Culture Azma Bokhari to approach the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) regarding an alleged indecent video of her circulating on social media.
Justice Alia Neelam has asked Azma Bokhari to submit all evidence to the FIA.
The LHC chief justice issued the direction during hearing of a complaint filed by Azma Bokhari against a video went viral on social media, claiming to be of her. However, the video does not show her.
In her plea, Bokhari argued that the video was edited and her face had been misused to make false claims on social media.
The petitioner has made FIA, the Ministry of Interior, and other unidentified parties as respondents in the complaint.
Bokhari’s legal team asserted that a woman named Falak Javed uploaded fabricated videos targeting her on X formerly known as twitter. The petition further alleged Javed’s involvement in “anti-national activities,” without elaborating on the nature of these activities.
Bokhari sought a two-pronged approach from the court. Firstly, she requested the inclusion of Javed’s name on the Exit Control List (ECL), effectively barring her from leaving the country. Secondly, she urged the court to mandate an immediate investigation by FIA into the alleged video’s authenticity.
Expressing empathy towards Bukhari’s distress, Chief Justice Neelam advised her to approach FIA directly and present all evidence in their possession. The Chief Justice also directed the public prosecutor to notify FIA regarding Bokhari’s application on the same day.
The LHC CJ also ordered immediate removal of her photos from social media platforms and instructed the petitioner to amend her petition.
The court suggested filing a separate application with the relevant authority to place Javed on the ECL.
In a recent social media X post, Bokhari has posted two screenshots from the video, comparing an edited version showing her and the real version showing another woman.
In her X post, Bokhari wrote: “I will go to the Lahore High Court tomorrow to seek justice from the Chief Justice. Is there any justice for us women, or is this facility only for terrorists?”
She stated that she would fight for justice in front of the court, stating that she would inquire about the authorities responsible for preventing action on cases of dignity violations to understand what the current instructions are for us women.”
Bokhari claimed to ‘will take matters into my own hands’ and had pledged to “fight my case myself in court”.
