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Actor Saba Qamar has once again found herself at the centre of a legal storm — this time over a police uniform, a dressing room, and a drama that aired two years ago.

A petition filed in a Lahore sessions court seeks the registration of a criminal case against Qamar for wearing a Punjab Police uniform in a behind-the-scenes video and two photographs that circulated on social media at the time of the drama‘s airing. Neither the pictures nor the video are currently available on Qamar’s own social media accounts. The video showed the actor getting her hair done in a dressing room wearing the uniform with an SP badge.

The uniform was part of Qamar’s costume for the 2023 drama Serial Killer, produced for Green Entertainment, in which she played Superintendent of Police Sarah Sikander. Crucially, the petition does not object to Qamar wearing the uniform on screen — the drama was produced with a valid no-objection certificate (NOC). However, it takes issue with the alleged use of the uniform in social media content outside of the show.

According to the application, the petitioner claims that under the law, no individual may wear a police uniform without prior permission from the authorities. By appearing in uniform — and with an SP badge — in a non-fictional setting, the petition argues that Qamar violated provisions of the Pakistan Penal Code related to impersonation and misuse of official insignia.

It claims that such imagery could mislead the public and damage trust in the Punjab Police, framing the act as both unlawful and disrespectful to the institution.

The petitioner also told the court that an earlier request to register a case at the Old Anarkali Police Station was not acted upon, prompting the petitioner to file the case in court instead.

Additional Sessions Judge Ilyas Rehan heard the petition, filed by Waseem Zawar and argued by Advocate Mujaddid Bajwa. The court has sought comments from the police and adjourned proceedings until January 14.

Cover image via Saba Qamar/Instagram