Nasim Zehra quits over leaked video

JournalismPakistan.com | Published: 14 June 2012

Nasim Zehra has resigned from Dunya TV following the release of a leaked video showing a staged interview. The incident has led to significant management changes at the channel.
Summary

ISLAMABAD: The upheaval at Dunya TV continued Thursday as Nasim Zehra, the channel’s Director Current Affairs resigned over a leaked video of behind the scene conversations of a special program aired Wednesday. The program Dunya Special featured an interview with property tycoon Malik Riaz and was co-hosted by Mubashar Lucqman and Meher Bukhari.

Once the video of those conversations went up, first on YouTube and then on other social media, the management quickly sacked Lucqman. The news of Zehra, who hosted the program Policy Matters, then filtered in later in the evening. An insider said she quit because of the video which had dealt a terrible blow to the channel.

In the video Lucqman and Meher are shown talking to Riaz during intervals – conversation that clearly reveals the interview was set-up. At one point Meher admits herself the interview was a planted one. With two down since the video surfaced, the Dunya managers were reported to be in a meeting to decide the fate of Meher.

Meher had joined Dunya from Samaa TV after reportedly being sacked for running a controversial program on Salman Taseer, the Punjab governor who was killed by his own security guard in January 2011 in Islamabad. There were indications of more heads rolling in the days ahead. The video, insiders say was leaked by someone at the channel’s Lahore centre where up-linking of live programs is done.

Riaz, of Bahria Town fame, is in the spotlight for making damaging accusations against the Supreme Court during a Press conference in Islamabad Tuesday. He also claims that Dr Arsalan Iftikhar, the son of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, allegedly accepted kickbacks and bribes worth over Rs 342.5 million (US$3.6 million).

KEY POINTS: