Zardaris threaten to sue newspaper for $100m

ISLAMABAD, February 6 (PTI): A US legal firm representing the Bhutto-Zardari family has threatened to file a lawsuit seeking over $100 million in damages if Pakistan's Jang media group does not apologise for a report about President Asif Ali Zardari's purported marriage to a doctor named Tanveer Zamani. Locke Lord Bissell and Liddell, the legal firm in New York, served notice on Friday on the Jang group for publishing a libellous article about Zardari.
The notice was issued on behalf of Mark Siegel, the publicist of slain former premier Benazir Bhutto, and the Bhutto-Zardari family. The notice said Zamani had confirmed to Siegel that she had "never met" Zardari.
The Jang group had reported extensively on a rumour posted on several hitherto unheard of blogs and websites that the President had "secretly" married Zamani, a New York-based physician and PPP activist.
"Unless such a retraction and apology is issued immediately, Locke Lord Bissell and Liddell LLP will initiate legal action on behalf of the Bhutto-Zardari family for libel, malicious publication and intentional infliction of emotional distress in all jurisdictions where your newspaper has assets," said the notice.
"This lawsuit will seek in excess of $100 million, which the Bhutto-Zardari family will donate to the victims of the 2010 floods in Pakistan," the notice said. The notice said the news report about the purported marriage was a "complete lie that was fostered by an internet hoax that has been ongoing for several weeks".