Former PTV Employee reveals Harassment by Senior Official

A former employee of Pakistan’s state broadcaster PTV has accused a senior official of workplace harassment.

Public outrage has been reignited after the official’s reinstatement.

Journalist Mahjabeen Abid shared her story on social media, alleging she was harassed by a senior figure at PTV Multan.

She disclosed that she was later dismissed without proper procedure.

According to Abid, her employment was terminated over a phone call after she lodged a formal harassment complaint.

She said she reported the matter to the Ministry of Information, which initiated an internal inquiry.

That investigation reportedly found the accused guilty under Pakistan’s Protection Against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act, 2010.

Abid claimed that after filing the complaint, she was subjected to retaliation online and offline.

Her social media post stated: “I was stalked, my family was harassed, and I was pressured to drop the complaint.”

Supporters of the accused official allegedly launched a defamation campaign to silence her.

Meanwhile, the accused challenged the original inquiry’s findings at the Federal Ombudsperson Secretariat for Protection Against Harassment.

This ultimately led to a second round of investigations.

The second inquiry concluded that terminating an employee via phone violated regulations.

However, it controversially ruled the harassment allegation unproven due to a lack of physical evidence.

During these proceedings, Abid had to appear repeatedly before inquiry panels, often accompanied by her parents.

She described the experience as traumatic and emotionally exhausting.

Despite a warning reportedly issued to the official, Abid alleges he has now been reinstated as General Manager at PTV Multan.

This action has sparked questions about accountability within the organisation.

Abid questioned why verbal harassment is not taken seriously in such inquiries.

She expressed her deep frustration, asking:

“Why must victims provide physical proof of emotional and psychological abuse?”

She also called attention to broader systemic failures in handling harassment cases, especially within public institutions.

Her online statements have attracted support but also renewed scrutiny of PTV and how state broadcasters handle internal misconduct.

So far, Pakistan Television Corporation has not issued any official response to the renewed criticism or the reported reinstatement of the official.

While no further legal action has been announced, the case highlights the difficulty survivors often face when pursuing justice within government institutions.

Mahjabeen Abid’s public call for transparency has reignited debates around institutional protection, survivor silencing, and the efficacy of harassment laws in Pakistan.