The hearing on the show-cause notice given to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) following its August 02, 2022 order in the foreign funding matter will begin on Monday (today).
The PTI has constantly asked for more time to submit its response since the notice was issued. September 19 was established as the deadline for submitting the PTI’s answer and wrapping up the hearing of arguments in this matter during the previous hearing.
The Election Commission will decide whether to seize foreign or forbidden cash after the notice’s proceedings are complete and whether to take action against PTI Chairman Imran Khan for filing fake certificates, including disqualifying him.
The Political Parties Order of 2002 requires that a show-cause notice be given to any party found to have received unlawful funds before taking disciplinary action against that party. As a result, the notice was given shortly after the ECP’s August 2 ruling in the foreign funding case.
Akbar S. Babar, a founding member of the PTI, filed the foreign funding lawsuit on November 14, 2014. After almost eight years of litigation, the ECP finally issued a ruling on August 2 that detailed millions of dollars in illegal foreign funding from foreigners and offshore companies as well as the PTI’s leadership hiding financial information.
The FIA’s investigation into the PTI’s accounts in light of the ECP’s findings continues, even though the show-cause notice hearing is still ongoing and is anticipated to end this month. PTI Chairman Imran Khan named several PTI leaders in his written submission before the ECP on March 14, 2022, for allegedly operating fake/Benami accounts. Notices under Section 160 of the CrPC and other pertinent statutes were issued to these PTI individuals.
Investigations are being conducted into nine additional PTI leaders who took large sums of money from the PTI’s accounts. Their names have been a secret up until now. In a similar manner, Rs 1.5 million were sent to Asad Umar’s account at the Bank Al-Habib Zamzama branch in Karachi on July 23, 2013.
The FIA investigations have revealed additional significant foreign funding to the tune of $1.2 million from the same company, in addition to the $2.12 million foreign funding from an offshore company called “Wootton Cricket Limited” that was documented in the PTI’s accounts and disclosed through the State Bank of Pakistan by the ECP. This includes $625,000 that was transferred through the “Insaf Trust,” which PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s close buddy registered and manages, and another amount of $575,000 that was transferred through his personal account in Karachi to the PTI.
