Islamabad: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's leader Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan slapped Pakistan Peoples Party's MNA Qadir Khan Mandokhail on the sets of a TV show on Thursday. The footage of the incident is doing rounds on social media after the two leaders entered into a heated argument during the TV show. The two appeared for the Kal Tak talk show on Express News which was hosted by senior journalist Javed Chaudhry.
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The argument started in midst of a discussion about the Imran Khan-led government's performance and excessive load-shedding in parts of Pakistan and soon it turned violent over the latest train collision in Sindh's Ghotki district which claimed the lives of over 60 people. Mandokhail mentioned Awan's comments about the train tragedy where she had allegedly said that 'by the Grace of God' this was the first train accident during the PTI's rule to which Awan claimed that her statement had been misconstrued. The situation intensified after Mandokhail brought up the corruption allegations against Awan and the two continued to shout over each other.
After the host quickly cut to a break, a video clip surfaced on the internet showing Awan physically attacking and slapping Mandokhail who was seen trying to grab Awan's arm to defend himself. Following this #FirdousAshiqAwan started trending on Twitter and people pointed out that this was the second time after an incident with the Sialkot assistant commissioner where the government official had been caught 'misbehaving' on camera.
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After facing backlash, Awan in her Twitter post said that the picture being painted about her argument with Mandokhail during TV show highlights only one side of the story which is propaganda as the clip did not include the part where the PPP leader used vulgar language against her and her late father. She also demanded that Express News should release the full footage of the incident while alleging that Mandokhail threatened and harassed her.
She stated that she would consult her legal team to file defamation charges against the PPP leader. Meanwhile, Mandokhail refuting the claims of threatening, harassing and using vulgar language against Awan and her late father, he said that he was ready to forgive Awan if she apologises for her actions. He also added that he would decide on taking action against the PTI leader after consulting with the party leadership.
