PTI MNA Kanwal Showzab Holds Journalist Hostage At Her Home

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNA Kanwal Shauzab has reportedly taken anchor Batool Rajpoot hostage at her home, asking her to delete the interview that she conducted with the lawmaker.

Journalist Hamid Mir tweeted that he received a message from the journalist who told him about the incident.

He shared screenshots of the messages from the journalist. In one message, she said Kanwal’s husband was also present and that Kanwal was ‘literally fighting’ with her.

“She is not letting me leave her house”, Batool wrote to Hamid Mir. “She says delete the interview and go”.

Messages of Batool Rajpoot pic.twitter.com/TniAGfgnCi

— Hamid Mir (@HamidMirPAK) March 11, 2022

In response, Kanwal Shauzab posted a video on Twitter in which she denied she had kidnapped Batool and attempted to explain the incident.

The MNA said that Batool had asked a question which Kanwal did not want to answer. The MNA said that she asked Batool to delete the footage and start the interview over, which Batool declined to do. She said that interviews should be done by ‘mutual agreement’.

Batool termed the claims as a publicity stunt, and said that Batool had gone to her home and harassed her, denying the allegation that the journalist had been forcibly detained.

میر صاحب تحقیق کر کے بات کرنی چاہئے
مظلوم کو ظالم اور ظالم کو مظلوم پیش کرنا میڈیا۔والوں کا کمال ہے
ایسی مکار صحافت سے اللہ بچائے https://t.co/VO8HHzvSdu pic.twitter.com/HnOVTUsv1a

— Kanwal Shauzab MNA (@KanwalMna) March 11, 2022

The exchange has been criticized by journalists and members of the press, who termed the exchange ‘reprehensible’ and ‘condemnable’.

بتول راجپوت کویرغمال بناناقابل مذمت ہے۔ لکھ کر رکھ لیں کہ اقتدار کے بعد عمران خان لندن اورشہباز گل واپس امریکہ جائیں گےلیکن انکی خاطر بدتمیزیاں کرنے والوں نےتواس ملک میں رہنا ہے۔اللہ گواہ ہےکہ مجھے ان کے مستقبل کی فکر ہے۔انہیں بھی یاد رکھنا چاہئے کہ ایک دن اقتدار ختم بھی ہوگا۔ https://t.co/XSfvYIqAB4

— Saleem Safi (@SaleemKhanSafi) March 11, 2022