Pakistan captain Babar Azam and assistant coach Azhar Mahmood have taken a shot at their national journalist Mubashir Luqman over T20 World Cup 2024 match-fixing allegation.
Azam has filed a defamation suit against Luqman of Rs 1 billion PKR (100 crore PKR or 30 crore INR), as per a report in the Indian Express. He has been asked to apologize within 14 days.
“You are hereby called upon to tender an unconditional apology and retraction in the same manner in which you issued the defamatory statements on your YouTube show and with the same prominence within a period of 14 days, failing which our client reserves the right to institute legal proceedings in a court of competent jurisdiction, against you, under the Defamation Ordinance 2002 for damages of Rs 1 Billion,” read the notice.
Azam’s lawyer Qazi Umair has slammed the journalist for disrespecting a player of his calibre. He compared Azam’s form to the like of former India captain Virat Kohli who was out of form for nearly three years.
“We have got a player of Babar’s calibre after a long time. Maybe after Younis Khan. The things which have been said are absolutely ridiculous. In the past, such things have also happened in Pakistan cricket. Yes, he didn’t perform well. It happens. Virat Kohli struggled for three years, and we never heard a word about anything negative from India about Virat, instead, the entire country was backing him,” Ali tells The Indian Express.
The lawyer said that the Pakistan captain doesn’t want to drag the matter to the court but wants an apology from the journalist for his comments.
“In Pakistan, you have to give a 14-day notice before filing a case in the court. If the person comes forward and apologises in that 14-day time then it is well and good. If they don’t then you can go to the court and file the case,” he says.
Meanwhile, Mahmood took to X, saying that he is seeking legal advice for those responsible for making these false allegations.
“This culture of falsely accusing and misleading people to believe a false narrative is now getting ridiculous and dangerous. Speaking without evidence and misconstruing facts is a criminal offence, and those engaging in such behaviour will be dealt with through legal action,” Azhar Mahmood wrote on X.
“Pursuing an increase in followers and media attention by spreading falsehoods is downright unacceptable. I will be pursuing legal advice against those responsible for making these false allegations towards me and my family, and strict action will be taken accordingly. We will not be discussing this matter further on social media. I urge everyone to avoid engaging with or entertaining these harmful narratives as it is essential to put an end to such behaviour in our media culture.”
