Islamabad (August 03, 2017): The Supreme Court adjourned hearing of the disqualification case against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan till September.
A three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar and comprising Justice Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Faisal Arab, conducted on Thursday proceedings into Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hanif Abbasi’s petition seeking Imran’s disqualification for concealing his assets and the ‘foreign funding’ of his party.
Abbasi’s counsel, Sheikh Akram, is conducting a rebuttal of the defence presented by the PTI chief’s counsel.
Addressing the bench, Sheikh said it is extremely necessary to probe the source of PTI’s funds.
Later, Sheikh argued over the money trail of Imran’s properties.
The chief justice observed that Imran declared his Bani Gala property in the nomination papers for the 2002 elections.
It is being proved from the bank records that the money was brought from abroad. Is it also necessary to prove the loan, observed the chief justice.
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In response, Sheikh said it was mandatory to declare assets on page seven of the electoral form. Referring to Nawaz Sharif’s disqualification in the Panama Papers case, he said when a son didn’t give his father 10,000 Dirhams as per an agreement the father was disqualified.
Justice Bandial remarked that if you have to read the judgment, read all of it. “You must read page nine of the electoral form in detail,” he commented.
The hearing was then adjourned till September as Abbasi’s counsel is travelling to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj.
Akram Sheikh said that Imran Khan formed company for his own interest and spent thousands of pounds on it after selling his flat.
Company got 2 lac 8 thousand pounds in accordance to the flat’s rent on May 3, 2004, he added.
He continued that 5 lac 62 thousand pounds were given to Jamima from Niazi Services accounts over which Justice Umar asked about the meaning of beneficial owner. Akram Sheikh responded that the meaning of beneficial owner is the one who is beneficiary of anything and the company was owner of the flat, not Imran Khan.
CJ said that the real owner is the one who keeps assets while Justice Umar remarked that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) should ask about the source of income in its form.
Akram Sheikh said that the party of his client doesn’t gather prohibited funds.
The court said that political parties make policies after coming into the government in which funds are very helpful.
The chief justice observed on Wednesday that the law does not permit collection of funds from international companies, saying the PTI chairman’s counsel will have to clarify this matter. The bench also summoned, for the second time, a copy of Imran Khan’s passport for verification of the ‘non-resident’ status.
At Wednesday’s hearing, Abbasi’s counsel contended “how someone who submitted a false certificate be considered sadiq [honest] and amin [truthful]”.
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Justice Bandial observed that the receipt of prohibited funds has to be established first. The chief justice remarked that it is the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) job to determine if prohibited funds were acquired by the PTI.
In response, Sheikh contended that the ECP has no say in this matter, and that if a commission [by the ECP] is formed, it should be asked to completely probe the matter.
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