Pakistan's ruling party MP found guilty of 'harassing' TV actor Momina

A National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) official on Tuesday informed a sessions court in Lahore that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Member of the Punjab Assembly Saqib Chadhar had been found guilty of harassing eminent actor Momina Iqbal after investigation.

NCCIA Lahore Station House Officer (SHO) Najam Bajwa shared this as Additional District and Sessions Judge Nusrat Ali Siddiqui took up pre-arrest bail petitions of the lawmaker and his wife, who was also named in the first information report (FIR) after Momina Iqbal's harassment allegations.

Chadhar and his wife appeared before the court upon the expiry of their previous pre-arrest interim bail.

Police official Najam Bajwa informed the court that the investigation against Chadhar had been completed and he had been found guilty of the allegations levelled by Iqbal.

He further told the court that Chadhar's wife surrendered her mobile phone to NCCIA two days ago and the device has been sent for forensic examination.

For his part, the counsel for Momina Iqbal urged the court to dismiss the suspects' bail pleas, arguing that their release on bail posed a threat to his client.

The judge adjourned the hearing after extending Chadhar and his wife's bail till Sept.3, directing that both sides present their final arguments at the next hearing.

Chadhar and his wife had secured pre-arrest bail in the case on June 5, a day after NCCIA registered a case against them. Their bail has been extended multiple times since.

The case against them garnered attention after a social media appeal by Momina Iqbal went viral in May and drew the attention of senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leadership, especially Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. In her online post, tagged to the PML-N leadership, Momina Iqbal alleged that she had been subjected to "online harassment, cyberbullying, and death threats for a long time."

She claimed that both she and her family had suffered severe mental stress and trauma because of the alleged conduct of the MPA, whose identity she did not disclose publicly at the time.

"A member of the provincial assembly belonging to the PML-N has been threatening me for an extended period. I repeatedly reported the matter to the NCCIA and the Federal Investigation Agency, but no action was taken," she stated.

Subsequently, the PML-N's top leadership directed the NCCIA to immediately entertain the actor's complaint and initiate action against the ruling party legislator if the allegations are proven. The Chief Minister's Office also wanted to clear its name following Iqbal's allegations against it.

Following these developments, the NCCIA summoned Iqbal and Chadhar on May 21. Its Punjab head Muhammad Ali Waseem said the two were summoned after the NCCIA received Iqbal's complaint.