A Twitter user questioned actor Mehwish Hayat's work ethic and commented on how he thinks that she has used political leaders as pawns for her gain in the industry and she is not staying quiet about it.

The tweet was in the context of the recent controversy regarding allegations levelled against female actors having intimate relationships with ex-army officers. It was under Hayat's post on the bird-app about taking legal action against all false allegations maligning her name and character. "It's true our actresses get awards and roles because of having affairs with elite and high-class people or institutes. Why act all pure now? Just accept it and move on," wrote the user. In 2019, Hayat received the prestigious national award Tamgha-e-Imtiaz for her services in promoting Pakistani cinema by President Arif Alvi. The user also questioned her merit for the said award and wrote, "You're the example of this as you didn't deserve the award but got it because of Bajwa." Replying to it, Hayat requested the user to remove the tweet immediately or she'd take legal action. "This post falls under the Sindh High Court rulings yesterday of harassment/defamation. Unless it is immediately removed, we will be reporting your account to the necessary authorities for appropriate legal action," she wrote.

Earlier this week, the London Nahi Jaunga actor approached Sindh High Court to take legal action against anyone who has been circulating defamatory content against her on social media. After the actor's petition, SHC has given Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) two weeks to have the content removed.  Hayat later took to social media and shared why she chose to go to SHC and decided to take legal action on the matter. "Today, I went to court to send a strong message that I will not stand for these vile smear campaigns anymore." She went on to add, "This has been going on for some time - but the events of the last few days have hit a new low. Criticise my work all you like but no one has the right to defame my character. I am not the one to sit and let anyone use me as a pawn in their dirty political games." For the unversed, an ex-Army major had claimed in a YouTube video that several 'actresses and models often stayed at ISI safe houses and were 'used' by former senior officials, according to the officials' closed aids.' Adil Raja further alleged that several politicians were also invited and several videos were purportedly recorded as well.

Published in The Daily National Courier, January, 16 2023

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