The Court ordered Dr Shahid Masood, who was present in court, to appear before the JIT led by director general Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Bashir Ahmed and provide solid and strong evidences to prove correctness of his report televised in a TV programme.
It is pertinent to mention here that the anchorperson had claimed during a late night show that Zainab's suspected rapist and murderer was a member of an international pornography gang, which also includes a federal minister. He further alleged that the suspect has 37 foreign accounts.
However, his accusation of the suspect's (Muhammad Imran) 37 accounts has been rejected by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) after countrywide probe of Imran's bank accounts.
When Masood told the court that it was a developing story and at this stage he was unable to provide the proof and sought more time, the court warned the anchor that he should not beat about the bush and come to the point "Do not talk about irrelevant and unrelated matters; give us proof of the bank accounts." "If the startling statements you have made turn out to be true, court will give you the medal and certificate for being number one journalist."
"If your news turns out to be a fake, you cannot even imagine what will happen to you," the chief justice warned him. Dr Shahid maintained that Zainab was gang raped, but only one criminal had been arrested "The influential people are trying to protect the gang that they have nurtured," he added.
"Are you aware that these allegations can change the direction of the investigations?" the court forewarned the anchor. The court told the anchor that they could order his name to be put on the Exit Control List, saying that he would have to appear before the JIT formed by the court.
The chief justice clarified that the Bashir Ahmed-led JIT would operate separately from the one formed earlier by the Punjab government. "The Mohammad Idrees-led JIT will only investigate the murder case, and new JIT would focus only on allegations levelled by Dr Shahid Masood.
The court ordered that investigations into the case should be completed as soon as possible and a challan should be filed. Prosecutor General Punjab Ehtisham Qadir was also asked to oversee the filing of the challan. The court barred Muhammad Ameen Ansari father of six-year-old Zainab and his lawyer from holding further press conferences. They both were directed to avoid media till the final finding of JIT team.
Ameen requested the court that the suspect should be given exemplary punishment so that no such crime is committed ever again. The Chief Justice ordered, Dr Muhammad Ashraf Tahir, director general of the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA), to use modern technology and devices to quickly complete investigations process in a transparent manner.
While appreciating the services of the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) Chief Justice of Pakistan said Chief Justice Nisar added that his personal number will be provided to the DG so that the latter may contact him in case of any problems with the probe.
Punjab Inspector General of Police Arif Nawaz Khan, head of the joint investigation team probing Zainab's murder, Additional IG Abu Bakar Khuda Bakhsh, and chief secretary of Punjab were also present in the court. The court heard several prominent journalists about the verification of a news story which has grave implications for the society morals.
Appearing before the bench, Zia Shahid of the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors said that if neutral investigations are conducted, the truth behind Masood's allegations can be unearthed. He noted that several incidents of child pornography have been reported in the past but no proper action was taken.
When asked by the chief justice about his opinion regarding the formation of a JIT by the court, Shahid said "an independent JIT should be formed". Arif Nizami told the court that if Masood's allegations are not true, the statements he made regarding the case would be "equivalent to the death of journalism".
Anchorperson Hamid Mir, however, stated that if Masood's allegations are proven to be incorrect, he should be allowed to seek forgiveness.