Claim: A video shows PML-N member retired Captain Safdar Awan exposing his wife Maryam Nawaz, saying that the election was stolen.
Fact: The claim misrepresents retd. Captain Safdar’s comments. He does not mention or “expose” Maryam Nawaz at any point. Instead he defended Nawaz Sharif’s defeat in Mansehra and accused “those who brought him back from London” of stealing the PML-N Supremo’s seat in the constituency.
A video of Safdar Awan has been shared online. It contains the following text: “کیپٹن صفدر نے اپنی ہی بیوی مریم نواز کا پول کھول دیا قسم خدا کی یہ الیکشن چوری ہوا ہے ! اب پٹواریوں بتاؤ
فرعون کی صورت میں تم لوگوں نے ایک کام تو کر دیا قسم ان لوگوں کے آگے کچھ بھی نہیں ہے کیونکہ تمہارے دماغ تم لوگوں کے فعل ہو چکے ہیں
یہ چور حکومت گھس بیٹھیے ہم پر مصلت کس نے کیے؟ کمنٹ میں بتائیں”
[Translation: Captain Safdar has exposed his own wife, Maryam Nawaz. I swear to God, this election has been stolen! Now tell us, PML-N supporters.
You people have at least accomplished one thing: you’ve become like Pharaohs. I swear, nothing works on you because your minds are no longer your own.
Who imposed this thief government and these intruders on us? Tell me in the comments.]
In the accompanying clip, Awan says:,
“Qasam khuda ki chori hua election aur kinho ne chori karwaya jo Nawaz Sharif ko London se le kar aye. Laga lo isko- Baat tou haqeeqat karein ge, Aain ki kareinge, qanoon ki kareinge, qasam khuda ki yeh baat yaad rakhna jab tak vote ko izzat nahi milegi sooba (unintelligible) ko bhi izzat nahi milegi”
[Translation: I swear to God, the election was stolen, and those who brought Nawaz Sharif back from London are the ones who stole it. Broadcast this – We will speak the truth, we will talk about what is right by the Constitution, and we will talk about what is right by the law. I swear to God, remember this: until respect is not given to the vote, respect will not be given to the province either.]
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check reverse-searched keyframes of the video to locate the original footage and understand the context of retd. Captain Safdar’s remarks. We found Dawn News’ coverage of his speech at an event in Mansehra on 3 November 2024, titled “Salute over Public Service? Safdar’s Bizarre Claim Raises Eyebrows | Dawn News.”
The Dawn News anchor states that Safdar claimed Nawaz Sharif did not lose the election from Mansehra; rather, the election was stolen, and that it was stolen by “those who had brought him from London”, the report adds.
The clip then cuts to Safdar’s speech, in which he says:
“Haqeeqat biyaan kar raha hoon, pata nahi raat ko media kya chalaye. Pata nahi main ne kaha ke Nawaz Sharif ke election vote se nahi haara, qasam khuda ki chori hua election aur kis ne chori karwaya? Jo Nawaz Sharif ko London se le kar aaye. Laga lo isko. Baat tou haqeeqat karein ge, Aain ki kareinge, qanoon ki kareinge, qasam khuda ki yeh baat yaad rakhna jab tak vote ko izzat nahi milegi sooba (unintelligible) ko bhi izzat nahi milegi”
[Translation: I am stating the truth; I don’t know what the media will run tonight. I said that Nawaz Sharif did not lose the election through votes – I swear to God, the election was stolen, and who stole it? Those who brought Nawaz Sharif back from London. Go ahead, broadcast this. We will speak the truth, we will talk about what is right by the Constitution, and we will talk about what is right by the law. I swear to God, remember this: until respect is not given to the vote, respect will not be given to the province either.]
After reviewing the original footage of his speech, it was evident that the clip in the viral claim was created using different segments of his speech.
He then says: “Jab logon ko yeh pata hai yaar, kya logon ki khidmat karni? Khidmat karoge toh kuch nahi milega. Jahan khidmat karni hai wahan salute karte raho; assembly bhi milegi, Senate bhi milegi, party bhi mil jayegi, election bhi ban jayega.”
[Translation: People know this: what’s the point of serving the public? If you serve the public, you get nothing. If you salute where you’re supposed to, you’ll get assemblies, you’ll get the Senate, you’ll get the party, and you’ll even get the election made for you.]
Awan does not appear to be exposing Maryam Nawaz, as alleged in the viral claim. Instead, he seems to be defending Nawaz Sharif’s defeat in Mansehra and accusing “those who brought him back from London” of stealing the PML-N Supremo’s seat in the constituency. Captain Safdar (retd) appeared to refer to Sharif’s defeat in the February 2024 elections when he lost his seat to independent candidate Shahzada Gastasap in NA-15 Mansehra.
At no point in the video does Awan refer to Maryam Nawaz.
Virality
The claim was shared here on Facebook.
On Instagram, it was shared here (archive) and here (archive).
It was shared here (archive) on TikTok.
Conclusion: Retd. Captain Safdar Awan did not expose Maryam Nawaz in the speech in question. In fact, he was defending Nawaz Sharif’s defeat in Mansehra and accusing “those who brought him back from London” of stealing the PML-N Supremo’s seat in the constituency.
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Background image in cover photo: Dawn News
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