F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Saturday strongly refuted the impression that the arrest of chairman PTI Imran Khan was linked to politics or upcoming elections. “Imran Khan was not arrested by the government, only court’s verdict was implemented when he was sentenced in Tosha Khana case,” she said while addressing a press conference here.
The minister said that the investigation of PTI chairman’s crimes had been going on for over one year, more than 40 hearings were done in the Tosha Khana case, but PTI chairman appeared only three times. She said that it was a simple case of a thief punished for his crime and any effort to link it with politics or elections was unjustified. “All the legal requirements have been met and after the trial is over, the court has given its verdict, in the case of Tosha Khana and his theft has proved,” she said.
The minister read the court verdict which said, ” It has been successfully proven that the accused has committed offense of corrupt practices by making and publishing false statements and submitted false and incorrect declarations and material in particular related to Form B of the year 2021″. The minister said all thieves arrested in various cases also have their vote, so should they all be released before elections?
She said that Imran Khan, despite given ample opportunity to provide proofs and file response to questions regarding corruption and misuse of power, he failed to file replies to allegations against him.
Whenever, he was asked to file reply to allegations of corruption, he incited the PTI workers to attack national institutions, she said. She reminded the media that the investigation into the crimes of the PTI chairman had been going on for past one year time. “More than forty hearings of the Tosha Khana case were done and the accused was given ample opportunity to clear himself”, she said. She said that after fulfilling all the legal requirements and completion of the trial, the court pronounced the verdict.
She said that Imran Khan sold the Tosha Khana gifts in the market even before purchasing them which was unique action. Marriyum Aurangzeb said the chairman PTI used to make excuses whenever he was asked for an answer in allegations of corruption and malpractices. She said that despite of the providing all the opportunities to clear his name, Imran Khan continued to lie in his answers in the Tosha Khana theft case.
Imran Khan, she continued, also lied in the case of 190 million pounds theft case and in the case of cipher. She also disclosed that the chairman PTI did not disclose correct assets in election returns. The minister said that Imran Khan, had declared three houses in Form B and tax returns of three years. Imran Khan declared only Rs 500,000 furniture in his 300 kanal house in Bani Gala, 8 kanal house in Zaman Park and his wife’s three kanal house in Bani Gala, she said.
She said that Imran Khan did not declare even a single tola of gold, but honestly declared two goats in his tax returns. Taking a jibe on Imran Khan, she said a thief was on the run for 15 months trying to hide his theft. She said that no one could compare the arrest of Imran Khan with the arrest of Muhammad Nawaz Sharif. Imran Khan was gifted watches, diamond sets, rings etc but he sold the watch before buying it from Tosha Khana and could not provide any proof of selling the watch in the entire proceedings.
The minister opined that today, the public found out the real reasons behind the May 9 incidents as a thief was running away from accountability. She reminded that whenever Imran Khan appeared before the court of law, the judicial complex was attacked, when the police went to Zaman Park with a warrant, they were attacked with petrol bombs. The vehicles of the police and rangers were torched by the PTI goons when they went to Imran Khan’s residence in Lahore on the courts directives.
