If PTI chief won’t provide justice…: JKT supporter MPs warn of ‘making their own decision’

LAHORE: The parliamentarians supporting Jahangir Khan Tareen (JKT), warned on Saturday that they would be forced to “make their own decision” if Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, the prime minister of the country, did not provide justice to JKT.

After appearing before a banking court here, Jahangir Tareen, MNA Raja Riaz and PTI South Punjab President and MPA Ishaq Khan Khakwani talked to the media.

Raja Riaz said that almost 40 parliamentarians of the PTI in the “state of Madina” were seeking justice from Imran Khan. They all think that justice was not being done to JKT, and Imran Khan, who was captain of the team, was not meeting them.

Raja Riaz requested the PTI chief to not linger on the matter. He said that they were still under the banner of the PTI. However, he warned, they would have no choice but to make their own decision if such behaviour by the PTI chief was not changed, as some people were misguiding him. Raja again warned that they were asking the PTI chief for the last time to provide them justice in the “state of Madina”.

Jahangir Tareen, while talking to the media after the hearing, thanked all his colleagues, who were showing solidarity with him at this crucial time. He said he had nothing to do with the sugar mafia, cartelisation or increase in sugar price in Pakistan. “Three FIRs have been registered against me, but there is no mention of sugar in all those FIRs,” JKT added. He called for people to read the three FIRs against him. He explained that the FIRs did not mention the rise in the price of sugar, “but the FIRs picked up things relating to my business eight to 10 years ago”. To a question, JKT said that the investigation was not the domain of the FIA.

Tareen said a fictional story had been fabricated against him. “My documentation is clear and transparent. I pay my income tax every year. Mine and my family’s accounts are with the income tax people,” he said.

“Ask any businessman,” the PTI leader said confidently, explaining that they [businessmen] would say that if Jahangir Tareen was not the most transparent, then who was? He said he did not know who is “doing this” to him, but “someone is”.

The PTI leader further said that he has not been to the Prime Minister House for more than a year-and-a-half.

He said that the tax department knows about all his monetary transactions. He again alleged that a conspiracy was being hatched against him to malign his name. However, JKT did not answer question of a reporter who asked JKT to point out the name of Shahzad Akbar, Azam Khan, Asad Umar or Shah Mehmood Qureshi that who among them was maligning his name. When Ishaq Khakwani tried to mention a name in this regard, JKT stopped him from doing so.

Earlier, a court of banking crimes extended pre-arrest bail of JKT and his son Ali Tareen till May 3, both accused of alleged corporate fraud and money-laundering by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). As the hearing commenced Tareens’ counsel informed the court that his clients were cooperating with the agency and would join investigation again on April 19.

The court, after hearing Tareens, extended their interim bail till May 3.

According to the FIR against Tareen family, the FIA stated that during the course of inquiry, a fraudulent and premeditated scheme of misappropriation of public shareholders’ money by Jahangir Khan Tareen has surfaced whereby JDW (a Public Ltd listed company-CEO Jahangir Khan Tareen) fraudulently transferred Rs3.14 billion to an associated private company, Farooqi Pulp Mills Ltd Gujrat (FPML), owned by his son and close relatives. “The material disclosure that FMPL was declared “not a going-concern (especially since FY- 2011/12) and that its operations had been practically shut down with multiple failed trial-runs, was intentionally withheld/concealed from public shareholders of JDW which amounts to criminal breach of trust (406 PPC) of public-shareholders’ money over which Jahangir Khan Tareen had fiduciary control as CEO,” the FIR stated.

“A corporate fraud of Rs3.6 billion was committed by JDW through over-valued purchase of associated company JK Farming Systems Ltd and booking losses through it, a corporate fraud of Rs3.1 billion was committed by JDW through investment in Farooqi Pulp Ltd and booking impairment losses through it, inexplicable transfer of Rs2.5 billion by JDW through non-arm’s cash transfers to various sister entities via Amir Warsi cash boy, inexplicable transfer of Rs7 billion was committed by JDW to Dherki Sugar Mills (non-arm’s cash transfers) without true and full disclosure in the financial statement,” the FIA claimed.