ali zafar
Pakistani singer Ali ZafarWikimedia Commons / Pakistani Ultimate Media

Pakistani singer Aqsa Ali has come out in support of singer Ali Zafar, who was accused of sexually assaulting actress Meesha Shafi. Aqsa said Zafar is a genuine person and said the allegations are absurd.

Aqsa said that the allegations had come as a surprise because Zafar and Meesha have been friends and knew each other from their university days.

"It took me by surprise because apparently both of them are friends and they know each other from their university days. I myself am from the fashion industry and I have been working as a model. Now I am following my passion to be a singer as well. I don't think these allegations make any sense, there are so many loopholes in them. I am all in for women empowerment but at least things should make some sense," she told IANS in an email interview.

Talking about the incident which Meesha had mentioned, Aqsa said, "When I read about Meesha telling the world that Ali harassed her at a jam session, I did not want to stay quiet as I was there as well with everyone else in the band.

"Her manager and the event manager were there as well. I was astonished, as nothing happened at all! We all have pictures, and we all were sitting together. It was a great jam session, everything was great -we also performed in Islamabad after the jam and all went really well," she said, adding that it is a serious matter and one needs to be clear about everything before making any sensational announcement or accusing anyone on social media.

Describing him as a genuine person, Aqsa said that Zafar treats people nicely. She also said Meesha's supporters are attacking her for speaking up the truth. "Lots of Meesha's supporters tore down my witness testimony by saying 'Oh, it doesn't count as she is Ali's band member...' or 'she was asked to write this'."