Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has denied that he received an amount of Rs 3.5 million from Lt Gen (r) Asad Durrani or under his instructions from his representatives as a donation to spend on the campaign for general elections of 1990.
In a four-page reply submitted by Nawaz through his counsel in the Asghar Khan case in the Supreme Court on Saturday, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief stated that he never received an amount of Rs 3.5 million or Rs 2.5 million from Mehran Bank’s Younus Habib or anyone else.
The reply adds that Nawaz Sharif has already recorded his statement on 14 October 2015 before the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) inquiry committee. Jamaat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq also submitted his party’s reply in the apex court, refuting all reports of receiving money from the premium intelligence agency of the country under the banner of Islamic Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI). Haq said the JI had voluntarily become part of the hearing and submitted the affidavit denying the allegations. As amir of Jamaat-e-Isalmi, he said, he was ready to face all investigations and commissions at all forums in this regard.
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court of Pakistan had directed 31 respondents including Nawaz Sharif to submit written replies by June 9 in the Asghar Khan case. Nawaz who failed to appear before the bench hearing the case was allowed to be represented by a lawyer.
On October 19, 2012, the Supreme Court issued a 141-page verdict, ordering legal proceedings against Gen (r) Aslam Beg and Lt Gen (r) Asad Durrani in a case filed 16 years ago by former air chief Asghar Khan.
Khan, who passed away in January this year, was represented in the Supreme Court by renowned lawyer Salman Akram Raja.
Khan had petitioned the Supreme Court in 1996 alleging that the two senior army officers and then-president Ghulam Ishaq Khan had doled out Rs140 million among several politicians ahead of the 1990 polls to ensure Benazir Bhutto’s defeat in the polls. The Islamic Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI), consisting of nine parties including the Pakistan Muslim League, National Peoples Party and Jamaat-e-Islami, had won the 1990 elections, with Nawaz Sharif being elected prime minister of Pakistan. The alliance had been formed to oppose the Benazir Bhutto-led Pakistan People’s Party.
Published in Daily Times, June 10th 2018.
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