In messages sent out Sunday on social media website Twitter, British journalist Christina Lamb has denied having been contacted for a planned ‘expose’ on ‘Familygate’ — the case allegedly implicating the Pakistani chief justice’s son Dr Arsalan Iftikhar and real estate tycoon Malik Riaz of financial wrongdoing.
The Supreme Court has taken up the case earlier last week following media reports alleging Dr Arsalan Iftikhar had sought favours from Malik Riaz, one of Pakistan’s biggest business magnates. Some reports suggested that the Arsalan Iftikhar had been trapped in the financial scandal in a conspiracy to malign the chief justice.
In one of the reports, a senior journalist had alleged that Malik Riaz had approached the Sunday Times’ Washington bureau chief Christina Lamb for a planned disclosure on the scandal while the chief justice was due to receive the international Jurists’ Award earlier this month.
Earlier today, Lamb tweeted from her account:
@christinalamb: “have no idea how this started but can i clarify i am not planning a big expose on Familygate, have spoken to no one abt it”.
In another tweet, Lamb rubished claims that she had been approached for to “break the news”, clarifying that she had neither any knowledge of nor had spoken to anyone about the whole affair.
@christinalamb: “any purported quotes from me on CJ issue are made up, all i know is what i’ve read in the media and have spoken to no one!”
The chief justice’s son has been rumored to have received between Rs 300 to Rs 400 million from Riaz to influence the court in proceedings against the former Bahria Town chairman.
On Saturday, Arsalan Iftikhar recorded his statement in the apex court, denying having any links with the business tycoon. Meanwhile, an application by Riaz’s lawyer to constitute a larger bench to hear the case was turned down in an order later in the day.
http://dawn.com/2012/06/10/british-journalist-denies-planning-expose-on-arsalan-iftikhar-case/
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