ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Monday requested the Supreme Court to probe the PanamaLeaks and disqualify Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for allegedly lying on the floor of the House regarding his assets.
The PTI Chairman, Imran Khan, filed a petition under Article 184(3) of the Constitution through his counsels Hamid Khan, Naeem Bukhari and others, praying to unseat Premier Nawaz Sharif, his son-in-law Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar, Member National Assembly, and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.
The PTI chief also prayed the apex court to direct the secretary interior to place the names of Nawaz Sharif and his family members named in the PanamaLeaks on the Exit Control List (ECL). He also prayed the apex court to issue directives for recovery of looted/laundered money along with properties purchased through British Virgin Islands companies and companies in other safe havens.
In April, the largest document leak, Panama Papers, had initially named some 200 and later on 400 more people, including businessmen and politicians from Pakistan, the family members of Premier Nawaz Sharif included in the list for establishing offshore companies in a tax haven.
The PTI chairman, however, made Nawaz Sharif, his family member including Maryam Nawaz, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Nawaz, Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar as respondents in the petition along with others including chairman NAB, secretary law, secretary interior and chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
He alleged that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his family members and Senator Ishaq Dar have been identified as money launderers, currency smugglers, pursuers of extremely expensive foreign properties in the name of minor children, setting up offshore companies in the British Virgin Islands and other secret heavens, setting up bogus foreign currency accounts, flouting all legal contracts over foreign declarations and setting up Gulf Steel Mills in Dubai during the Bhutto era without ever disclosing the manner of transferring the money to Dubai and selling them the same admittedly for 9 million dollars, holding that amount without declaration, building Azizia Steel Mills in Jeddah, claiming wrongly that the London properties were purchased and their sale of Azizia Steel Mills.
He further contended that the premier repeatedly gave false declaration of assets, concealed assets, completely failed to pay taxes and dues, lied on the floor of the House, hushed criminalities through connivance with NAB and FBR, raised assets from one foundry to 29 entities, becoming one of the largest entrepreneurs in the country. Imran Khan said the apex court is the last hope of the people of Pakistan and only it can throw away this yolk of corruption.
It is pertinent to mention here that last week, Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami Sirajul Haq also moved the Supreme Court, praying to direct the Federation to initiate inquiry in PanamaLeaks. The JI ameer without mentioning the names of Nawaz Sharif and his family members had contended that a large number of the personalities, who are holders of public offices, are also involved in the commission of the said alleged offences, adding that they did not mention in their assets details their investments through offshore companies, so all such holders of public offices are liable to be disqualified from their offices and also be punished accordingly.
The registrar office of the apex court however, the other day had returned the petition for not being entertainable with further ruling that the petitioner had not approached the proper forum with further objection that the petition prima facie appears to be a frivolous within the contemplation of Order XV11, Rule 5 of the Supreme Court Rules 1980.
Imran Khan also referred to Article 62(d) and (f) of the Constitution as well as Article 63(1) and (p) of the Constitution relating to qualification and disqualification of a person from being elected to the National Assembly.
The PTI chairman contended that Nawaz Sharif on the floor of the House had said that Gulf Steel in Dubai was established by his late father in 1972 though transferred money after nationalisation and sold in 1980 for $9 million, adding that the steel mills in Jeddah (Azizia) were set up after his forced exile from Pakistan from the sale proceeds of Dubai Steel Mills while the Mayfair properties in London were purchased from the sale proceeds of Azizia Steel Mills in 2006 while 9.8 billion rupees in taxes were paid by the Sharif Group of Companies between October 1993 and April 2016.
Imran Khan said that the premier’s son Hussain Nawaz added a sardonic and ironic layer to the respondents’ wealth by re-asserting that the properties in London were purchased from the sale of the steel mills in Jeddah and the steel mills had been set up with loans from banks and friends but prior to that the properties had been rented during his study days and rent was remitted from Pakistan and this was stated by Hassan Nawaz in ‘Hard Talk’ programme on BBC.
He submitted that the failure of Nawaz Sharif and Captain (R) Safdar to correctly disclose their assets or of their dependents, prima facie establishes disloyalty to the state, disobedience to the Constitution and laws applicable to him.
He further contended that the default in payments of taxes due, the evasion of taxes by sleight of papers, the false declaration of assets submitted render Nawaz Sharif disqualified to remain a Member of the National Assembly and as a consequence, the prime minister. He said the non-disclosure of receipt of huge amount by his spouse, disqualify Captain (R) Safdar while the confessional statement of Ishaq Dar disqualifies him too.
He prayed the court to direct chairman NAB to discharge his obligation under Section 18 read with Section 9 of the NAB Ordinance 1999 and complete investigation in mega corruption cases pending for the last 15 years. The PTI further prayed the apex court to order chairman NAB and chairman FBR to probe and minutely scrutinise the tax returns and assets declaration of the respondent and the entire Sharif family. Similarly, the court was prayed to direct chairman NAB and chairman FBR to initiate claims on behalf of the government for recovery of the properties in question.
Nadeem Mushtaq Ramay adds from Burewala: Imran Khan has said that the Lahore will decide the fate of the corrupt rulers as they are begging other countries to clear their names in PanamaLeaks.
He was addressing a public rally at Gaggo Mandi in Burewala on Monday night. "The premier has been destroying key institutions to hide his corruption," he said.
“Altaf Hussain hatched conspiracies against the country and did terrorism for the last 23 years sitting in London, but people of Karachi are loyal with the country and after Lahore, we will go to Karachi to rid people of the MQM politics,” he said.
Imran said the country needs young and vibrant politicians and in PP-232, the PTI has fielded an educated young lady. “This is what is called real change. We need women's role in society."
Imran said the government has destroyed small farmers and businessman and agriculture production has gone down drastically. He said 40 years ago, Pakistan was most developing country but the corrupt leadership has destroyed it. He said Malaysia and Singapore have been developed because they got honest prime ministers and they made progress in leaps and bounds.