SC judge Mazahar Naqvi's sons serve defamation notice on lawyer

• Justice Naqvi's son ask complainant to publicly apologise. 
• Both brothers term allegations of complainant criminally motivated.
• Say Advocate Dawood does not qualify to be called legal practitioner.

ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi's sons served a legal notice to advocate Mian Dawood, seeking a public apology within 15 days for defaming them, The News reported Sunday. 

Advocate Dawood had filed a misconduct complaint against Justice Naqvi in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), saying that the judge and his family members had been found involved in malpractices and misuse of power in a criminally-designed pattern during his service. 

The complaint was filed seeking Justice Naqvi's removal after his name surfaced in connection with the recent audio leaks purportedly involving him, former Punjab chief minister Parvez Elahi and others.

The advocate further submitted that the judge had used his position to facilitate his sons and daughter studying abroad and getting financial gains from Zahid Rafique.

In the legal notice, Sayed Tassaduq Mustafa Naqvi and Sayed Tassaduq Murtaza Naqvi — sons of Justice Naqvi — asked the complainant to publicly apologise within 15 days.

“You are also to issue a corrigendum in the same mode and manner, failing which, you prepare yourself to face legal action (civil and criminal) for injuring the reputations of the undersigned, as an integral part of a reputed establishment,” says the legal notice.

“Such proceedings will include but are not limited to, a suit for damages (inclusive of all costs, etc), and these remedies are without prejudice to any other remedy that the undersigned is entitled to as per law,” the legal notice added.

Both the brothers termed the allegations of the complainant criminally motivated and an attempt to blackmail and defame them.

“All you have done is reveal yourself as a jealous, hateful man in crisis running malicious campaigns against people you cannot even dream to stand by,” the brothers stated, adding that the actions will be dealt with by the law.

“In response to your allegations, it is informed that the undersigned(s) possess a bachelor’s degree in law from the University of London, a master’s degree in law from Indiana University Bloomington, and a speciality in business and commercial law,” the brothers stated.

They further stated that they have been practising before the Lahore High Court (LHC) since August of the year 2017 and are fully financially independent.

The brothers stated that the complainant even did not qualify to be called a legal practitioner, since he had not even attended a law school, and added that it was in itself a blatant violation of the law and rules applicable to advocates that, on the one hand, he poses himself as a lawyer and also operates media platforms for his publicity, which is also clothed with defeat and shame.

“Before you go on to point fingers at the undersigned(s), provide us with a record of your career as a legal practitioner and justify exactly how you became a lawyer,” the brothers asked the complainant.

Dawood, while reacting to the legal notice, said that the decision to reply or not to the legal notice will be taken after consulting his legal friends.

He said that for the supremacy of law and the Constitution, he will not bow down to the threats, adding that instead of hiding behind the legal notice, they should file their replies in the Supreme Judicial Council on corruption.