Pakistani actor Uzma withdraws assault case against real estate tycoon’s daughters
Uzma Khan and one of the accused woman (centre).
Tariq Butt, Correspondent
Actor Uzma Khan has withdraw the case against three women, belonging to real estate mogul, and their armed guards whom she had accused last week of torturing her and her sister after angrily storming a house where she was staying in Lahore.
A former member of her legal team claimed that the two sides had reached a settlement, which led to the withdrawal of charges, but no official confirmed this on record.
Video clips showing violence carried out on the actor and her sister Huma, allegedly by the daughters of property tycoon Malik Riaz, had sparked outrage and calls for justice on social media earlier this week.
A First Information Report (FIR) of the incident was registered on March 27 on Uzma's complaint against Riaz's daughters Pashmina Malik and Ambar Malik, Amina Usman Malik (wife of Usman Malik), and 15 unidentified armed men — the private guards with whom the three women had entered the house seen in video clips.
Uzma had later denied having cut a deal with the persons involved in the violence. "These are just rumours and I reject them making it clear that no such effort is being made,” she had said, adding that neither the suspects had contacted her for any deal nor would she accept it.
But later Uzma submitted an application to police, saying the case she had gotten registered last week was lodged "on the basis of a misunderstanding" and that she no longer wants to pursue it.
She said no charge-sheet had so far been submitted in the case. "I don't want to give any testimony or deposition in the above-stated case," she added.
She recorded a similar statement before Judicial Magistrate Nauman Nasir of Lahore Cantt Courts under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), saying she wants to withdraw the case.
Her sister, Huma, in her separate statement recorded under Section 164 of CrPC said "no such occurrence" — a reference to the violence — had taken place at their house.
"The accused party has not made any torture upon me," she submitted, adding that the injuries she was seen to have sustained in social media videos were caused by broken "glass from a table." She further said the suspects nominated in the FIR are "innocent."
"My sister namely Uzma got registered the instant FIR due to misunderstanding. Therefore, the same may very kindly be cancelled," Huma added.
A judicial magistrate in Lahore had last week issued arrest warrants for the three women nominated in the FIR on the request of the investigating officer, however, they obtained pre -arrest bail from a sessions court.
The development came as two members of Uzma's legal team, Hassaan Niazi, a nephew of Prime Minister Imran Khan, and Khadija Siddiqi, announced that they were dissociating themselves from the case.
"This is to announce that we are disassociating from #UzmaKhan case. I understand the reasons of any settlement by two aggrieved women in a rigged system; my conscience doesn’t allow me to be part of any of that, even in a professional capacity," Siddiqi said in a tweet.
Niazi, meanwhile, wrote: "Since the first day, I had made it clear to my client that we won’t be part of any settlement. I only accepted the case to support the resolve of Uzma to get justice for her."
Niazi said they had tried to reach Uzma regarding the case on Sunday night, but she neither responded to their calls and messages nor was she available when a member of Niazi's team visited her.
The next day, Niazi said he received a message from an unidentified person stating that Uzma and her sister have reached a settlement with the suspects. "I was shocked," he added, saying they subsequently decided to dissociate themselves from the case.
