Syeda Maimanat Mohsin (born 1959), commonly known as Jugnu Mohsin, is a Pakistani politician and journalist. She was an independent member of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab until 31 March 2022 and then joined

PML(N) The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) ( ur, , translit=Pākistān Muslim Līg (Nūn) PML(N) or PML-N) is a centre-right and liberal conservative political party in Pakistan. Alongside the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Peoples Party ...

on 1 April 2022. Her term ended on 14 January 2023. Previously, she has served as an editor of '' The Friday Times'' and ''Good Times''. She previously hosted an eponymous weekly talkshow ''Jugnu''. Born into a wealthy Punjabi family, Mohsin studied law at

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, where she met and married journalist

Najam Sethi Najam Aziz Sethi (Urdu, pa, ; born 20 May 1948) is a Pakistani journalist, businessman and cricket administrator, currently serving as the chairman of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). He also is the founder of ''The Friday Times'' and ''Vangua ...

in 1983. In 1999, her husband, ''Friday Times'' editor-in-chief

, was arrested by the

Nawaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi language, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime ...

government for his work as a journalist and held for a month without charge, causing Mohsin to launch an international campaign for his release. That year, she and Sethi were awarded the International Press Freedom Award of the

Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American independent non-profit, non-governmental organization, based in New York City, New York, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journa ...

. She won the

2018 Elections The following elections are scheduled to occur in 2018. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. Africa *2018 Djiboutian parliamentary election 23 February 2018 *2018 Sierra Leonean general elect ...

from PP 184 Constituency of

Okara District Okara District (Punjabi and ur, ), is a district of Punjab, Pakistan. It became a separate district in 1982, prior to that it was part of Sahiwal District. She received her early education from the

Convent of Jesus and Mary, Lahore The Convent of Jesus and Mary, Lahore, commonly referred to as Convent, is a private Catholic primary and secondary school for girls situated in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It was founded on 17 November 1876 by Religious of Jesus and Mary, a congre ...

and did her A-level from the Moreton Hall School. She received her law degree from the

and was called to the Bar at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

, London.

Journalism career

In 1984, Sethi was imprisoned on a charge of copyright but no Pakistani newspaper had protested the arrest. This led to Mohsin and Sethi wishing to commence their own independent newspaper. Sethi's name carried some infamy and so they applied for a publishing licence under Mohsin's name. Called into

's office to discuss the application, Jugnu Mohsin told him that she intended to publish "a social chit chat thing, you know, with lots of pictures of parties and weddings". It was finally approved in 1987, but Mohsin requested a one-year delay to avoid the first issue coming out during the dictatorship of General

Zia ul Haq General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq HI, GCSJ, ร.ม.ภ, (Urdu: ; 12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani four-star general and politician who became the sixth President of Pakistan following a coup and declaration of martial law in ...

. The paper's first issue appeared in May 1989.

1999 kidnapping incident

In early 1999, Sethi gave an interview to a journalist from the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

television program, ''Correspondent''. The program planned to expose corruption in the Pakistani government. At the beginning of May 1999, Sethi was warned that his arrest was imminent. On 8 May 1999, Sethi was taken from his home by government agents. Mohsin said at least eight armed officers broke into their house; the family's security guards were assaulted; and no warrant was shown. Sethi was threatened and she was tied up and left locked in another room. Sethi was held for almost a month without charge. He was kept in the custody of the army intelligence group, Inter-Services Intelligence in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

. Mohsin publicly campaigned for his release and continued to publish the ''Friday Times''.

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

stated that Sethi's arrest was connected with his investigations into government corruption, and designated him a prisoner of conscience. The US-based

sent a letter of protest letter to Prime Minister

, noting the organisation's dismay "that the state (Pakistan) continues its persecution of independent journalists". The

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...

president, James Wolfensohn called Sharif to urge for Sethi's release. On 1 June 1999, the Pakistan government charged Sethi with "condemnation of the creation of the State and advocacy of the abolition of its sovereignty" and "promoting enmity between different groups". Sethi was transferred to the custody of the police. However, the following day, the Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled that the government had not provided sufficient evidence to justify Sethi's detention. Sethi was released, and the charges against him were dropped. Mohsin and Sethi received the International Press Freedom Award from the Committee to Protect Journalists.

''My Feudal Lord'' book controversy

In June 1991, Mohsin and Sethi's publishing company, Vanguard Books, released Tehmina Durrani's ''My Feudal Lord''. The book relates her marriage with the politician and

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

landlord,

Mustafa Khar Malik Ghulam Mustafa Khar ( ur, ; born 2 August 1937) is a Pakistani politician and feudal lord who has previously served as the Chief Minister of Punjab, Pakistan, Chief Minister of Punjab and Governor of Punjab, Pakistan, Governor of Punjab. ...

. In the book, Durrani alleges that Khar mistreated and abused her. Durrani signed a contract with Mohsin giving Mohsin foreign rights and fifty percent of foreign royalties. On 19 May 1999, however, during Sethi's detention, Durrani said at a press conference that Sethi had stolen all of her earnings from the book. She said his actions were "an even bigger case of hypocrisy than my experience with the feudal system". Durrani sued Sethi for mental torture, and he counter sued for defamation. An earlier dispute over the foreign rights had been settled out of court in 1992. A review of the contracts by the UK newspaper ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' described Sethi as having acted in good faith and described him and Mohsin as "the injured party".

Newspaper satire

During the rule of President

Pervez Musharraf General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of the ...

, Mohsin wrote a monthly humour column titled "Mush and Bush" featuring fictional conversations between the Pakistani President and US President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

. She had previously targeted Prime Minister

with a column for his "dim and authoritarian personality" and "his intolerance of dissent". Mohsin's sister,

Moni Mohsin Moni Mohsin (born 1963) is a British-Pakistani writer based in London, United Kingdom. She wrote a long running satirical column ' The Diary of a Social Butterfly' for The Friday Times and a book with the same name. Early life and career Mohsin ...

, satirises the country's social elites with another column for the paper, "Diary of a Social Butterfly".

Political views

Mohsin advocates for a liberal Pakistan and opposes religious fundamentalism. In January 2006, she argued for the right of women to participate in a

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

wearing shorts instead of the

shalwar kameez Shalwar kameez (also salwar kameez and less commonly shalwar qameez) is a traditional combination dress worn by women, and in some regions by men, in South Asia, and Central Asia. ''Shalwars'' are trousers which are atypically wide at the wa ...

. Mohsin is a member of the Women's Action Forum of Pakistan organization. She later became a major critic of

Imran Khan Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi ( ur}; born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician and former Cricket captain who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Pakistan from August 2018 to until April 2022, when he was ousted through a no-confidenc ...

's entry into politics. However, in 2018, after being elected as a member of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab, she supported

PTI PTI may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Pardon the Interruption'', an American television sports show * PTI, a musical group on the WTII Records label Organizations * Pacific Torah Institute, a yeshiva high school in Vancouver, British Columb ...

.(Mahnoor Sheikh
Jugnu Mohsin To Support Ruling Party In Punjab
UrduPoint.com website, Published 7 August 2018, Retrieved 27 September 2020 On 1 April 2022, she joined

prior to the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan.

Personal life

In 1983, she married a Punjabi Khatri businessman

whose family converted to Islam from Hinduism five generations ago. The couple has two children, Mira Sethi and

Ali Sethi Ali Aziz Sethi (Urdu/; ; born July 2, 1984) is a Pakistani singer, songwriter, composer, and author. Sethi rose to prominence with his debut novel, '' The Wish Maker'' (2009). In 2012, Sethi began focusing on his musical career and made his film ...

References

External links

''The Friday Times''

''GoodTimes''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mohsin, Jugnu 1959 births Living people Pakistani lawyers Pakistani women lawyers Pakistani socialites Pakistani women journalists Pakistani women's rights activists Pakistani newspaper founders Pakistani newspaper publishers (people) Punjab MPAs 2018–2023 Sethi family Women newspaper editors Convent of Jesus and Mary, Lahore alumni Alumni of the University of Cambridge People educated at Moreton Hall School Members of Gray's Inn Journalists from Lahore Politicians from Lahore Women members of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab 21st-century Pakistani women politicians