ISLAMABAD: Two of the former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s security guards were Tuesday shifted to jail on judicial remand for attacking a television cameraman on duty. Earlier in the day, a case was registered against the former premier’s security guards. In the first information report (FIR) filed against three of Nawaz’s guards, Wajid Ali said he was performing routine coverage of the Parliament session for his channel on Monday. “As I began filming Nawaz when the former prime minister headed out of the parliament, Nawaz’s chief security guard Shakoor asked two other guards to attack me,” he recounted. “I tried to run away, but the two guards whose names I do not know caught up with me and tortured me. One of the guards told me I will be shot dead if I dared to come near again,” Wajid Ali was quoted as saying in the FIR. “I then lost consciousness, and when I regained conscious, I was in hospital,” he said. The FIR has been registered against Shakoor and two other guards. Again on Tuesday, the security guards of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif manhandled journalists protesting against torture on TV cameraman. The incident on Tuesday takes place when Nawaz Sharif reached the NAB Court for hearing in the Flagship reference. Talking to journalists, Nawaz Sharif expressed his regret at the attack and vowed to take the incident to its logical conclusion. Elaborating on the incident, Nawaz said his chief security guard, Shakoor, was clearing the path for him as they headed for the car when the guard pushed the cameraman out of the way. “I objected to the way [the cameraman] was pushed out of the way… [and then] the cameraman hit Shakoor’s forehead with his camera. Shakoor’s forehead started bleeding,” Nawaz told reporters. “I said, no need to react. I saw the [cameraman] getting pushed, my guard getting hit, after that I don’t know what happened, I was leaving,” he added. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Imran Khan Tuesday took notice of the torture of TV cameraman. He said violence against journalists was unacceptable at any cost and issued directives for ensuring security of media workers. He directed Minister of State for Interior Shehryar Afridi and Special Assistant on Media Affairs Iftikhar Durrani to look into the matter. Speaking to media, Durrani slammed the PML-N supermo for what he said lying instead of giving a justification on the incident. “Nawaz Sharif can’t be expected to speak the truth,” he said.a He said the prime minister is looking into the issue, adding that he inquired after the health of the cameraman at a hospital. “This incident shouldn’t have occurred on the premises of the National Assembly,” he said, and added there was no need to have private guards in such a large number at the Parliament House. Published in Daily Times, December 19th2018.