Khattak rejects corruption charges in mega projects

NOWSHERA: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief for KP and former chief minister Pervez Khattak on Thursday rejected the allegations of corruption in the mega projects and said he had nothing to do with these schemes.

“The caretaker government mandate is to ensure free, fair and impartial elections. It should not overstep its mandate,” he said while speaking to journalists in his hometown of Nowshera. There were reports in a section of the media that suggested that the caretaker government was probing the alleged corruption in the Bus Rapid Transit Project.

The resignation of the chief executive officer of the TransPeshawar which runs the BRT Project, fueld speculations. Apparently responding to such reports, Pervez Khattak, who was the KP chief minister when the BRT Project was launched, said the corruption charges in the BRT Project were ridiculous.

“This is so because it was a project of the Asian Development Bank which provided the funds and named its own consultants. I have nothing to do with it,” said the PTI leader who remained a defence minister when his party was enjoying power in the Centre from 2018 to 2022.

Pervez Khattak insisted that there was no corruption in the Billion Tree Tsunami Project and that he was not concerned with the project.

“The Forest Department was responsible for the project and had submitted the response to that,” added the PTI leader. Pointing to the Malam Jaba land issue, the PTI senior leader said the National Accountability Bureau had ended the inquiry into the issue in light of the verdict of the Peshawar High Court.

Pervez Khattak rejected the allegations being levelled against him and said he had always practised clean politics. “I will quit politics if any corruption charges were proven against me,” he said, advising the KP caretaker setup not to overstep its mandate.

The PTI leader said he and his family had always served the people of Nowshera, adding the people of his hometown put trust in him by electing him to lawmaking bodies from time to time.