ECP allows PTI to inspect PMLN, PPP accounts

ISLAMABAD: In an important development, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has allowed Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Farrukh Habib to have access to PML-N and PPP accounts for a period of eight days.

In this connection, the EC has issued a written decision on the minister’s request. “The scrutiny committee should give Farrukh Habib eight days to inspect the documents and records so that the petitioner could inspect the documents of PML-N and PPP from 10am to 3pm,” the document reads.

The Election Commission also allowed Farrukh Habib to nominate two technical persons, including a chartered accountant and a financial expert for his assistance and asked him to submit the names to the commission within five days.

The Election Commission said that it had already given Akbar S Babar an access to PTI documents and Farrukh Habib's request was identical to Babar’s request, therefore, the EC approved Farrukh Habib's request on this count. The ECP has directed the scrutiny committee to submit a comprehensive report on the alleged foreign funding case of PML-N and PPP.

Reacting on EC’s decision outside the Election Commission, Farrukh Habib said that the Election Commission had approved his request and given the PTI an access to PML-N and PPP accounts, adding, “Now both PTI's financial experts and chartered accountants will be able to check the accounts of political parties." He mentioned that both PML-N and PPP strongly opposed access to their party accounts.”

“Today, PML-N and PPP have been defeated by the decision of the Election Commission and as per the State Bank of Pakistan records submitted to the scrutiny committee, there are 12 fake accounts of PML-N and seven fake accounts of PPP. Now that we have access to the accounts of PML-N and PPP, there will be more sensational revelations in the coming days,” he claimed.

He asserted that the PML-N and PPP had considered themselves above the law but they were to abide by the law, adding that millions of rupees had been deposited in their accounts. “The chartered accountant firm and PML-N wanted to hide their accounts from us while PML-N takes money from mafia for its own interests,” he alleged, adding, “Bilawal Bhutto now knows how many fake accounts his party owns, these are the people who are hiding behind the delay.” He said that Nawaz Sharif's accounts were also used for money laundering and all facts would be placed before the nation.