Court rejects Adil Raja’s appeal to waive off fine; imposes £3,000 more

ISLAMABAD/LONDON: A British court has ruled against YouTuber Adil Raja’s appeal to waive a £10,000 fine in a defamation case filed by retired Brigadier Rashid Naseer. The court ordered Raja to pay an additional £3,000.

Raja had sought to have the initial fine reduced on April 16, 2024. This appeal was rejected by Deputy High Court Judge Richard Spearman, who also imposed the extra £3,000 fine.

UK court fines YouTuber Adil Raja in defamation case

Previously, Raja had applied to pay only £35 per month towards the £10,000 fine, which the court dismissed.

Reportedly, Adil Raja has also started a fundraiser for himself at GoFundMe which has already collected over £45,000.

Raja, accused of anti-Pakistan activities on social media, is represented by Mahtab Anwar Aziz of Central Chambers Law Solicitors. The firm is owned by businessman Ahmad Jawad and his partner Mannu Vaish. They have been allegedly involved in organising press conferences and protests against Pakistani institutions in London, The Nation reported on Friday.

In an earlier ruling, Judge Spearman determined that Raja defamed Brigadier Rashid in nine out of ten publications. The defamatory content included tweets and videos posted by Raja starting from June 2022. The defamation case was filed by Brigadier Rashid on August 11, 2022.

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Court documents revealed that Raja’s legal team, led by Mahtab Aziz, made unsubstantiated allegations against Pakistani institutions. These claims were rejected by the court, which emphasised the lack of evidence.

Adil Raja has resided in the UK since April 2022.