SC informed of Jahangir Tareen’s ‘changing stances’ in disqualification case

ISLAMABAD (Monitoring Desk): The Supreme Court was informed on Wednesday that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Tareen has adopted various stances regarding his leased agriculture land in South Punjab.

A three-member Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, is hearing Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Hanif Abbasi’s petition seeking the disqualification from Parliament of Tareen over his alleged non-declaration of assets and ownership of offshore companies.

Presenting his arguments, Abbasi’s counsel Azid Nafees informed the court that at one point Tareen claimed before the court that leased agriculture land is not taxable whereas later he stated that there is no column in the election nomination forms to declare leased agriculture land.

The chief justice remarked that the question is whether the Punjab tax authority took any action on the non-payment of tax by Tareen.

Justice Umar Ata Bandiyal, the other member of the bench, observed that it would have been a separate matter had tax payments of leased land been challenged by the petitioner. He wondered whether the apex court can assume the tax man’s role.