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Former Pakistan Finance Minister, Mohammed Ishaq Dar, succeeds in libel claim against New Vision TV Limited (NVTV)

New Vision TV Limited has this week apologised to Mohammed Ishaq Dar, Pakistan’s former Minister for Finance and founding member of the Pakistani Muslim League Nawaz party (“PML-N”). NVTV owns the exclusive rights to broadcast ARY News, an Urdu language news and current affairs channel based in Pakistan, in the United Kingdom and the European Union.

On 8 July 2019, NVTV broadcast the ‘Reporters’ programme in which it was asserted by Choudhury Ghulam Hussain and Sabir Shakir that Mr Ishaq Dar had stolen money from the Pakistani Government and was willing to pay it back if allowed to return to Pakistan. It was also asserted that Mr Ishaq Dar’s bank accounts had been traced and that they contained large sums of stolen money in the region of one billion dollars. Further comments were made, asserting that Mr Ishaq Dar had caused someone to be subjected to death threats in order to encourage that person to leave Pakistan.

Further, on 8 August 2019, NVTV broadcast the ‘Powerplay’ programme. During the course of that programme, the Special Assistant to the Pakistani Prime Minister on Accountability and Interior, Shahzad Akbar, asserted that during the period Ishaq Dar was responsible for the Financial Monitoring Unit in Pakistan, he actively and improperly impeded its work, by preventing key institutions accessing systems that would assist it in its functions. It was further asserted that Mr Ishaq Dar had taken those actions to protect individuals who had been involved in the Choudhury Sugar Mills money laundering case.

NVTV has now accepted that Mr Dar was not involved in any of the aforesaid activities and has unconditionally apologised for the significant distress, upset and embarrassment that the broadcasts caused him.

NVTV has, further, agreed to pay Mr Dar substantial damages on account of the damage caused to his reputation, as well as his legal costs. David Lemer continues to act for Mr Dar, instructed by Ushrat Sultana of Stone White Solicitors, in a case which has attracted widespread publicity in Pakistan.

The apology in English is available here

The apology in Urdu is available here