A district court in Islamabad on Friday rejected the pre-arrest bail application of TikToker Noshin Saeed alias Dolly in a case related to forest fire.
Saeed, who has over 11 million followers on TikTok, had posted a clip of himself playing in a silver ball gown in front of a burning hill, possibly Margalla Hills in Islamabad, with the caption: “Wherever I am, there’s a fire. She goes. “
his video immediately caught fire On social media because people had initially assumed that he had set himself on fire, when the scorching heat was going on in Pakistan, causing a forest fire.
Subsequently, within a few hours of being uploaded, the video was taken down from the application.
Later, Saeed said in a clarification issued by an assistant that he did not start the fire and “there is no harm in making a video”.
Reading: TikToker Dolly disputes location of viral Fire video
He had applied for pre-arrest bail after an FIR was lodged against him for setting fire to the forest to shoot a video. The court had granted him interim bail till May 27 (today).
However, ahead of today’s hearing, his lawyer Mian Tariq Manzoor filed an application from Judge Abida Sajjad to transfer the bail case.
During the hearing of the transfer application by Judge Kamran Basharat Mufti, Saeed’s counsel told the court that he had submitted bail as well as bail from his friend, but Judge Sajjad rejected the bail saying that the court was a lawyer. Cannot accept bail.
The lawyer said that the TikToker was unable to arrange bail from a local and the judge had “made up his mind before hearing the facts of the case”. He requested that the case be transferred to another judge “on merit”.
He also claimed that the fire had started in Haripur but the complainant had not yet identified the area.
Judge Mufti said the court would wait for the government’s reply and adjourned the hearing till June 1.
When Judge Sajjad resumed hearing on the pre-arrest bail application later in the day, he asked where the suspect was.
After this the court clerk asked the suspect Saeed to come thrice to the courtroom but she did not appear. Instead, she stayed in her lawyer’s chamber.
His lawyer Manzoor informed the court that the hearing on the transfer application has been adjourned till June 1 and requested the court to grant time till then to his client.
On his part, the government’s counsel Hasnain Haider argued that the district court was not authorized to hear cases related to forest fires.
Judge Sajjad then rejected the pre-arrest bail application.
Thereafter, his lawyer submitted a fresh application for anticipatory bail which was heard by Judge Mufti but it was again rejected.
After the hearing, Saeed left the courtroom with his lawyer, but he is yet to be arrested.