Islamabad March 10 (TNS): TV anchor Shahid Masood, who had made started claims about Imran Ali, the rapist and killer of seven-year-old Zainab, has decided not to contest the JIT report which had rubbished all his allegations as baseless and unfounded.
In a statement, Masood claimed that since the JTI members were picked up by the Supreme Court, he “could not comment on the veracity of the JIT findings” about his allegations that Imran Ali was a member of an international child pornography gang.
“Whatever the inquiry committee has concluded, I do not contest and refute the same,” he said adding that he will “observe due diligence and care before making any such statements”.
Earlier, the Supreme Court had given one-week time to the anchor to either challenge the JIT report or face penalty that may include a jail term or a fine or both. The chief justice had also warned him that it was too late to do anything. The chief justice had asked Masood to seek a public apology over the lies or face the consequences.
Seven-year-old Zainab was raped and murdered in Kasur and the incident sent shockwaves through the nation’s spine and people and political and religious leaders demanded the public hanging of Imran Ali, who was convicted to death on for counts by an Anti-terrorism Court.
Last week, the inquiry committee headed by Federal Investigation Director-General Bashir Memon submitted its report to the Supreme Court and according to the report findings, Imran Ali neither videotaped the gory scene of rape and murder nor he uploaded it on the internet.
According to the inquiry report, the convict was not a member of the international pornography group, as claimed by Massod, and neither did he hold 37 accounts of different banks.
Masood had hurled 18 allegations against Imran Ali claiming that he was an agent of the international pornography gang and he had 37 bank accounts and he was backed by two members of the assembly.
Soon after Shahad Masood made the startling, but unfounded claims, at a TV programme on TV One channel, Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar took notice and formed the inquiry committee headed by Bashir Memon. The committee carried out the inquiry for 30 days and during the investigation, it also summoned Shahid Masood.
The TV anchor, who often makes unsubstantiated claims in his TV programme and he had to face a scathing criticism over his latest claim on the social and mainstream media, still insists that “he will never spare his detractors and expose them”.
