HYDERABAD: Former federal minister Shazia Marri has taken legal action against several media outlets and an FM radio station, accusing them of tarnishing her reputation with baseless allegations of her involvement in a Rs96.7 billion corruption scandal.
These legal notices have been directed not only at specific media organizations but also at an official from the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) and the Human Rights Justice Defenders Organization. Marri's legal team has emphatically denied the existence of any inquiry initiated by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
In the notices, issued through Siddiqui and Raza Barristers and Legal Consultants on September 5, it is unequivocally stated that no official authority has conducted or initiated any inquiry, investigation, or raid related to these allegations.
Furthermore, the recipients of these notices have been cautioned that they must issue an unconditional apology within two weeks. Failure to do so could result in Marri pursuing legal action against each of them, seeking damages amounting to Rs10 billion. The notices also emphasize that the media outlets in question failed to verify the authenticity of the spurious reports before publishing them.
The news, which was widely shared on social media, had alleged that a NAB team had recovered nearly Rs97 billion during a raid at Marri's residence.