JI serves Rs1bn defamation notice on ex-FBR chief Shabbar Zaidi

Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) has served a legal notice on former Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman Shabbar Zaidi, demanding Rs1 billion in damages over his alleged claim that the party was paid to help suppress public protests, the party said.

According to a JI statement, the notice was issued on July 27 through Advocate Tahir Iqbal Malik on the instructions of Karachi JI General Secretary Taufiquddin Siddiqui.

The JI said that the former FBR chairman had made the allegations against the party during a podcast and later repeated them in content circulated on YouTube, Facebook, X, TikTok, WhatsApp and other social media platforms.

According to the legal notice, Zaidi had described JI as the “establishment’s firewall”, alleging that the party was being used to dilute public issues and protests.

The notice said the remarks amounted to serious allegations of secret funding, bribery, corruption, political deception, betrayal of public interests and alleged cooperation with state elements.

JI has asked Zaidi to provide evidence supporting his claims. The party wants him to identify the person who allegedly made the payment and the individual who received it, as well as disclose the amount, date, time, location and method of the alleged transaction.

The party has also sought details of any bank account or financial record linked to the alleged payment, along with information about the protest or public issue involved.