Web Desk (LTN NEWS): The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) sent a notice to PTI chairman Imran Khan on Friday and asked him to appear in court on August 23 in the case of prohibited funding. In this case, the ECP had already decided that the party had received foreign money, which was against the law.
The case “Notice to Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf in terms of Rule 6 of Political Parties Rule 2006, in compliance of judgment by the commission dated August 2 in case title Akbar Sher Babar” will be heard on August 23, at 10 a.m., according to the ECP website.
It also sent Imran a notice about his disqualification, which will be heard in a separate hearing on August 16.
This week, the electoral body decided unanimously that the PTI did receive illegal funding and sent the party a notice asking why the money shouldn’t be taken away.
A case brought by PTI founder Akbar S. Babar and going back to November 14, 2014, was decided by a three-person ECP bench led by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar (CEC) Sultan Raja.
In the written verdict, the commission said that the party “knowingly and willfully” took money from Wootton Cricket Limited, which is run by business tycoon Arif Naqvi. It said that the party “willingly accepted” $2,121,500 in illegal money.
The ECP said that the party “knowingly and willfully” took money from Bristol Engineering Services, which is based in the United Arab Emirates, E-Planet Trustees, which is based in the Cayman Islands, SS Marketing Manchester, which is based in the United Kingdom, PTI USA LLC-6160, and PTI USA LLC-5975, which were “banned and in violation of Pakistani laws.”
It went on to say that PTI Canada Corporation and PTI UK Public Limited Company also gave money to the party. “Both companies are breaking Pakistani laws by sending money to PTI Pakistan’s bank accounts, which is illegal.”
Also, a company in Australia called Dunpec Limited and three companies in Pakistan called Anwar Brothers, Zain Cotton, and Young Sports gave money to the party, which was against the law.
“Through fundraising efforts by PTI USA LLC-6160 and PTI USA LLC-5975, 34 foreigners and 351 companies based outside of the United States gave money to PTI Pakistan. Pakistani law makes it illegal to collect donations and contributions from people and businesses outside of the country “it said.
The election watchdog also said that Romita Shetty, an Indian-origin businesswoman who lives in the US, had given money to the PTI, which was against the law.
The ECP said that the party had only owned eight accounts before the commission, and they said they didn’t know what happened to 13 other accounts. “Data from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) shows that all 13 accounts that the PTI says it doesn’t own were opened and run by senior PTI management and leadership at both the central and provincial levels.”
The commission also noticed that the party didn’t mention three accounts that were also run by the top leaders of the party. It said that the PTI’s leaders had made a “serious mistake” by not telling the public about and hiding 16 bank accounts. This was against Article 17(3) of the Constitution.
Article 17(3) says that every political party must tell the truth about where its money comes from.
Between 2008 and 2013, the PTI chairman turned in a Form-I that was found to be “grossly inaccurate based on the financial statements obtained by this commission from SBP and other material on record.”
In its order, the commission also said that it was “forced to hold that Imran Khan did not do what the Pakistani laws required of him.”
It said that for five years in a row, the PTI chairman had sent in Form-I and signed a certificate that didn’t match up with the accounting information we had in front of us.
“During the five years under review, Imran Khan has sent in papers that were very wrong and inaccurate. Even while being looked at and questioned by this commission, the PTI continued to hide and not tell the whole truth about where its money came from “it said.
Referral for Imran to be disqualified
Separately, the ECP has agreed to hear a case from a group of MNAs with the Pakistan Democratic Movement who want Imran to be kicked out of public office (PDM).
The commission’s website says that the case will be heard on August 18.
MNA Barrister Mohsin Nawaz Ranjha sent the reference to Chief Election Commissioner Sikander Sultan Raja yesterday. It was signed by Agha Hassan Baloch, Salahudeen Ayubi, Ali Gohar Khan, Syed Rafiullah Agha, and Saad Waseem Sheikh, who are also lawmakers.
It asked the ECP to disqualify Imran based on Article 62(1) and Sections 2 and 3 of Article 63 of the Constitution (f). It also had written proof to back up what they said about the former PM.
Article 62(1)(f) says, “A person shall not be eligible to be elected or chosen as a member of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) unless […] he is wise, righteous and non-profligate, honest and Ameen, and a court has not ruled otherwise.”
Article 63(2) says, “If there is any doubt about whether a member of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) is still eligible to be a member, the Speaker or, if he is the Chairman, the Chairman shall unless he decides that there is no doubt, refer the matter to the Election Commission within thirty days. If he doesn’t do this, it is considered to have been referred to the Election Commission.”
While Article 63(3) says, “The Election Commission shall decide the question within ninety days from its receipt or deemed receipt, and if it is of the opinion that the member has become disqualified, he shall cease to be a member and his seat shall become vacant.”
