LAHORE: Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan Saturday said Maryam Nawaz had made an absurd attempt to gain public sympathy through an audio/video tape.

Addressing a press conference along with traders' representatives at a local hotel, she said during the PML-N press conference today, Shehbaz Sharif looked like a gambler who had lost every thing. It seemed that a coup had occurred in PML-N and the niece had cornered his uncle, she added.

Dr Firdous said the head of the gang, responsible for leaking, engineering and marketing of the tape, was in jail whereas his remnants were sitting in shape of Maryam Safdar with a tape.

If someone level allegation against others then it was necessary that he should be honest and credible, she said.

Firdous said a failed attempt was made to bolster PML-N with the help of the tape provided by Nasir Butt, who was an infamous murderer and gang leader who fled to the United Kingdom after killing five people and remained an absconder for 20 years while Nasir Butt's credibility was also a question mark.

She said Nasir Butt worked as a security guard for Nawaz Sharif in the UK and his cases were closed when the PML-N came into power again.

Dr Firdous said credibility of the tape would be determined after forensic analysis. "We will not hide anything from the nation, but the whole nation do knew about Justice (retd) Qayyum's tape scandal," she added.

"Our government never forced judges to flee from their chambers whereas the PML-N had a history of always exercising undue influence over the courts," she said.

Prime Minister Imran Khan and the government strengthened the courts, she said and added that the government did not have influence over them.