Curse is a mild slur for parliament: Imran

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Thursday said cursing the parliament was a mild slur though he wanted to use a harsher term, as thieves and mafia were sitting in the legislature.

Speaking at a hurriedly-called news conference here at Bani Gala, he alleged that the Sharif family had even used the Punjab Police and their drivers to whiten black money.A day earlier, echoing Sh Rasheed Ahmed’s words, Imran had dubbed parliament a cursed one.

He explained that it were the members of parliament who took it forward or brought it down. He alleged that parliamentarians had destroyed this supreme institution.“Through an amendment, a thief was made head of the ruling party and hence he was sitting right on the national treasury, who had to give answers regarding Rs300 billion.

“Fasten your seatbelts, as I will be making explosive revelations in my press conference this afternoon!,” was one of his tweets earlier in the day.However, at the news conference, which was speculated by many to be about the possible decision of quitting the assemblies, it turned out to be an event to share what he called the second part of ‘why was I thrown out’ (mujhe kyun nikala).

He alleged the Sharifs were involved in money laundering worth Rs1.14 billion through the FZE Capital, Hill Metals and other companies in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Imran claimed that Nawaz Sharif sent approximately Rs800 million to his daughter Maryam Nawaz, who sent Rs25m back to him. He alleged that around Rs240 million was laundered through employees of the Sharif family and Punjab Police via the Hill Metal establishment.

“We are talking about the prime minister of this country, who was doing this. Had this been a civilised nation, he would have been in jail rather than asking ‘mujhe kyun nikala’?”

He claimed the Sharif family owned 16 offshore companies, including FZE Capital and Hill Metals, while Hussain Nawaz was its chairman and money laundering was done through this network.

Imran alleged that transactions, through bank accounts of multiple people who were drivers and other employees of Nawaz, employees of the Sharif Medical City and constables of Punjab Police, revealed that the companies were solely created for the purpose of money laundering.

He explained that Rs40 million went to Hanif Khan and Rs35 million to Abdur Razzaq, and then Punno Khan, driver at Jati Umra, was sending Rs50 million to one and he also gave Rs180 million to Asim Mehmood and Nadeem Sarwar also got money. He said Asim then sent Rs240 million to the employees of Nawaz.

“It was obvious that the money was not going to the drivers but to the Sharifs. This was just one company that was involved in laundering worth Rs1.14 billion.”Imran slammed Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif for his speech in the assembly in which he said that he (Imran) had disgraced parliament. He wondered if there was any country where a foreign minister was a legal consultant in Dubai on Rs1.6 million monthly salary. He said Usman Dar, a PTI leader from Sialkot, would share details of Asif and spouse’s accounts in the US.

He claimed that millions were sent to his bank accounts in the US. He billed Khawaja Asif a security risk and stigma on democracy.Imran challenged, “Give me a precedence of any assembly in the world which makes a law to favour a culprit, who steals from the people and lies in the court”. He said legislation was made for a person who was corrupt, involved in money laundering and presented fake documents and made a statement in the assembly, which was in contrast to the one he had made before the apex court in the Panama case.

He said Nawaz sent Rs20 million to the Chaudhry Sugar Mills through his own account, which was revealed in investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).

Nawaz, he alleged, gave money from the MCB account to Chaudhry Sugar Mills while Ramzan Sugar Mills Masood and Co. got Rs3.5 billion and details of this would be given to the NAB.

He praised the NAB and its chairman for summoning the Punjab chief minister and said the entire nation stood by him with great hope. He urged the chairman NAB not to come under any pressure, as either the Sharifs would purchase people or target and victimise them.

He noted that in 1992 Nawaz Sharif got enacted the Economic Reforms Bill to safeguard those who would bring money from abroad, alleging there had been a massive increase in the Sharif’s fortunes after 1992. There were 46 names among whom wealth was distributed, he added.

He alleged that Nawaz had obtained Iqama for the purpose of money laundering while his son Hussain Nawaz owned Hill Metal, through which Rs1.14 billion was sent to Nawaz, who then gave his daughter Maryam Rs200 million and their employees and the Punjab Police constables were found involved in their transactions.

Replying to questions, Imran said they had discussed the option of resignations and would take a decision thereon at a party meeting.

According to a PTI statement, Imran had summoned the Central Executive Committee meeting on January 23 to discuss the issue of resignations and other matters.He said the Lahore event was just to record protest for the Model Town victims, who could not get justice in four years.

Defending his statement on parliament, he said it was parliament in 1974 that enacted the law on Khatam-e-Nabuwwat.He said the incumbent parliament had secretly amended the law while the law minister on the floor of the assembly denied twice that there had been any change in the related law.