A public clash between two Pakistani journalists, Safina Khan and Asad Malik, took place at a London café last week, drawing widespread attention after a video of the incident went viral on social media.
The confrontation unfolded during a press conference held by Salman Akram Raja, a close aide of imprisoned former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and the Secretary General of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party. The event, attended by several journalists, quickly turned chaotic as tensions escalated between the two reporters.
In the widely shared video footage, Khan and Malik are seen engaging in a fierce exchange of verbal abuse. The altercation included personal attacks, expletives, and insults aimed at each other’s families, with the word "pig" repeatedly used. Bystanders at the scene attempted to de-escalate the confrontation, but their efforts proved futile as the verbal assault continued.
Safina Khan, a UK-based journalist affiliated with Pakistan’s NEO News, later alleged that she had been harassed and threatened by Malik and several other Pakistani reporters based in London. In a series of posts on social media, she claimed that during the press event, she was abused by Asad Malik, ARY News reporter Farid, Hum News reporter Rafeeq, and TV London correspondent Mohsin Naqvi.
“During Salman Akram Raja’s coverage, I was harassed and abused by Mohsin Naqvi, TV London reporter Asad Malik and ARY News reporter Farid, and Hum News reporter Rafeeq. They threatened to kill me,” Khan wrote on social media. She also stated that this was not the first time such threats were made against her, and alleged that previous complaints to authorities had been ignored.
Khan tagged the London police in her posts, warning that if anything were to happen to her, the individuals she named would be responsible. She further accused PTI supporters of having previously targeted her and even attempting an acid attack.
In response, Asad Malik strongly denied the allegations. Speaking through his own social media channels, Malik described Khan’s claims as “false and baseless.” He asserted that Khan initiated the verbal abuse without provocation and that multiple eyewitnesses could attest to the sequence of events.
“These are consistent with her pattern of past behaviour. The facts are supported by multiple eyewitnesses,” Malik posted.
Following the backlash, Safina took to social media again to justify her reaction during the altercation. “If a man gets up and abuses me or my mother, I will abuse him twice as much as the women in his house,” she stated.
She also accused ARY News reporter Farid of editing and posting the viral video clip from a fake account named ‘Pakistani’ to portray her in a negative light. The incident has sparked concern within the journalistic community, especially among Pakistani media professionals abroad, highlighting growing tensions and factionalism that mirror the country’s polarized political environment.
Also Read: Fawad Khan and Atif Aslam's Instagram accounts blocked in India
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