Norwegian reporter Rolf J. Widerøe declared proclaimed offender by Pakistani court

ISLAMABAD: The editor-in-chief of the Norwegian far-right tabloid Verdens Gang and its reporter Rolf John Widerøe have been declared guilty by a Pakistani court for wilful failure to appear.

The two were summoned for publishing a false and defamatory story on Pakistan and Pakistani-origin businessman Umar Farooq Zahoor.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Abid Zubair in Ferozewala convicted Widerøe and the editor-in-chief in a court order for failing to respond to notices sent and served on the tabloid’s address in Norway, which were published in leading English-language dailies in Pakistan.

The two also failed to provide any evidence to back up their defamatory story after the court issued summons last November.

The notice states: “Whereas the defendant will not be served through the ordinary channels. Therefore, the advertisement in the newspaper affects the service of the defendants. You, the defendants, are directed to appear in court in person or through counsel, failing which, ex parte proceedings will be initiated against you. Given in my hand and the seal of this court. Additional District Judge Feroz Wala. (25783171262).

Dubai-based business tycoon Umar Farooq Zahoor has filed a lawsuit against Verdens Gang and Widerøe for publishing a defamatory and vindictive article in which he allegedly concealed facts and damaged their reputation and services in the form of millions of dollars of investment for Pakistan.

Zahoor’s lawyers have highlighted that the tabloid’s personal campaign is biased and Islamophobic, as it deliberately concealed important facts while attacking Zahoor.

“It is beyond imagination that our client would not have been in Norway “How can he threaten your tabloid?” he said, adding that Widerøe has been a declared criminal in Pakistan since 2015.