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Posted by admin in Pakistan-A Nation of Hope on April 16th, 2014
QUETTA: Senior Minister and Balochistan PML-N chief Sardar Sanaullah Khan Zehri has alleged that India has been financing a separatist movement in the province and expressed fear that a ‘superpower’ and some other neighbouring countries may also extend financial support to it if the Gwadar port is made operational.
Talking to reporters at his official residence here, he said the Gwadar port had great geo-political importance and making it operational might affect the business of some other ports in the region.
“India is involved in financing separatists’ movement in Balochistan and a superpower and some neighbouring countries may contribute in efforts to destabilise Pakistan by creating more unrest in the province if the deep-sea port of Gwadar is made operational,” he said.
The Separatists Movements in Balochistan Are Led by Tyrannical Medieval Feudal Chieftains or Sardars, whose Power was Abolished by Onset of Democracy & Provincial Autonomy
in Pakistan
However, the new port would greatly boost the economy of the region by increasing trade activities through an economic corridor for China, Central Asian states, Afghanistan and Pakistan, he said.
“Gwadar port will boost our national economy and create job opportunities for thousands of youths in Balochistan.”
He said he would fully back Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch in measures to be taken for restoration of peace. “Progress and prosperity cannot be achieved until peace is restored in Balochistan,” he said.
He said the PML-N would observe a ‘martyrs’ day’ at Anjira, Khuzdar, on April 17 and hold a condolence reference for his son Mir Sikandar Jan Zehri and other members of his family who had died in various attacks.
Posted by admin in Pakistan-A Nation of Hope on April 16th, 2014
Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and associate editor of the Wall Street Journal. He was columnist for Business Week, Scripps Howard News Service, and Creators Syndicate. He has had many university appointments. His internet columns have attracted a worldwide following. His latest books are, The Failure of Laissez Faire Capitalism and How America Was Lost. http://www.paulcraigroberts.
Posted by admin in Pakistan-A Nation of Hope on April 16th, 2014
According to a report in The Nation, Pakistan has decided to export the Chinese co-developed aircraft, the JF-17 Thunder by sometime next year.
The export of the aircraft is part of greater push to increase defense exports including Pakistani ordnance and Pakistani-built helicopters, Minister of Defense for Production Rana Tanveer said while briefing the press.
Various media outlets have suggested that talks are already under way with Sri Lanka, Kuwait, Qatar, and other friendly countries.
The PAC JF-17 Thunder, or CAC FC-1 Xiaolong, is a light-weight, single engine, multi-role combat aircraft developed by the Pakistani Air Force, the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex and the Chengdu Aircraft Industries Corporation of China.
Pakistan has reportedly manufactured between 42-45 aircraft thus far, though sources vary in their count.
However, Pakistan may have more of these aircraft than is often reported. China announced it would export 50 improved JF-17 with upgraded electronics after the death of OBL.
While no news regarding their delivery has been made public, an additional dispersal area with 8 new aircraft shelters was constructed between 2011 and 2012 at PAF Peshawar, an airfield where JF-17 are actively deployed.
JF-17 Thunder fighters unveiled in Dubai Airshow
Date : 14-11-2011
DUBAI, Nov 13 : Pakistan Air Force is participating in Dubai Air Show-2011, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister of UAE, Sheikh Muhammad Bin Rashid Al-Makhtum, on Sunday. Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman, Chief of the Air Staff, Pakistan Air Force also attended the inaugural ceremony along with a large number of delegations from different countries including Air Chiefs of a number of Air Forces, said a press release. Later, the Air Chief also addressed the press conference regarding the participation of PAF in Air show. JF-17 Thunder, K-8 and Super Mashak aircraft of Pakistan Air Force along with the PAF contingent comprising PAF pilots and technicians are participating in Dubai Air Show.
The impressive JF-17 (Thunder) jointly co-developed (by PAF & CATIC), and co-produced by PAC (Pakistan Aeronautical Complex) and CATIC (China Aero-technology Import Export Corporation) has been put up for static as well as aerial display in the Air Show.
Pakistan Air Force has inducted JF-17 in its fleet and with the co-production in full swing the aircraft are rolling out from Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) Kamra.
The JF-17 Programme has been a success story since its inception in 1998. Developmental work on the aircraft commenced in the year-1999 and detailed design was finalized in September, 2001.
After flight testing, a Small Batch of 08 aircraft was produced in year-2007 and finally serial co-production of the aircraft started in Pakistan in the Year-2009. So far PAF’s two Squadrons have been equipped with JF-17s,while the third is planned to be raised by beginning next year.
JF-17 made its debut at Farnborough Air Show in 2010, when two JF-17s flew all the way from Pakistan to Farnborough, UK. At Farnborough, the aircraft attracted intense focus of visitors and international media.
Four months later in November 10, three JF-17s flew over to China to participate in Zhuhai Air Show, where the aircraft made its first ever aerobatics display. In June 11, three JF-17s participated in aerobatics and static display in 100-years Celebrations of Turkish Air Force.
At present, JF-17 aircraft stands prominent in its own class of fighters. In the present environment, when defence budgets are shrinking and Air Forces face difficulties in affording modern combat aircraft, JF-17 offers a highly cost effective solution with cutting edge capabilities.
In the shape of JF-17 aircraft, Pakistan Aeronautical Complex and CATIC offer a cost- effective, highly potent, multi-role combat aircraft which is capable of meeting the challenges of present and future Air Power employment.
The JF-17 Thunder is an all weather, multi-role, light combat aircraft that has the potential to be the main stay & work horse of any Air Force. The design of JF-17 aircraft is based on modern concepts of aerodynamics.
The aircraft is equipped with a digital fly-by-wire flight control system that gives it the agility in all regimes of the operational flight envelope. The JF-17 has a complete glass cockpit, excellent man-machine interface and modern self-protection suite, which enhance combat potential and survivability of the aircraft.
The JF-17 is equipped with fourth generation avionics systems, wide range of conventional and smart weapons, long range glide bombs, Beyond Visual Range & short range Air-to-Air missiles, Anti-Ship missile and Air-to-Surface missiles.
The aircraft requires remarkably short lengths of runway for take-off & landing, which offers flexibility of aircraft operations at short air strips.
Shortly, the aircraft will also have Air-to-Air refuelling capability, which will further enhance its combat potential and employment options.
29 October 2013
Posted by admin in Pakistan-A Nation of Hope on April 16th, 2014
A record of payments allegedly made to 19 senior-journalists of Pakistan, by the Bahria Town owner Malik Riaz has surfaced on the social networking site Twitter, Aaj News reported.
Renowned names of various news television anchors and journalists like Dr. Shahid Masood, Najam Sethi, Kamran Khan, Nusrat Javed, Meher Bokhari, Mubasher Lucman, Hamid Mir, Javed Chaudhry, Sana Bucha, Sohail Waraich and Asma Shirazi among a few others, are present in the lists below.
UPDATE:
Mubasher Lucman finally speaks out; resigns via YouTube.
After the embarrassing footage leak of Dunya TV’s interview of Riaz Malik, which was conducted by Mubasher Lucman and Meher Bokhari, the former Dunya TV host has come out in an unexpected manner defending his actions by rationalizing the events of the leaked footage and announced his resignation from the TV channel.
Responding to all the questions he faced in social media, Mubasher Lucman in his YouTube video, started off by saying that he ‘owes it to his family and fans’ to give an explanation regarding the leaked footage incident and his name being mentioned in the list of 19 senior Pakistani journalist who were allegedly bribed by Riaz Malik.
He said that false allegations have been made against him and his channel. Showing clips of his past TV shows and interviews he tried to rationalize the incidents that occurred during the commercial breaks of Malik Riaz interview.
Defending the phone call of Abdul Qadir Gillani, he said that receiving a call or SMS during a live show is not something that is out of the normal in Media and journalism. He then went on to play video clips of his previous shows where he is seen ‘grilling’ Ali Musa Gilani, son of Yusuf Raza Gilani and brother of Abdul Qadir Gillani also known as the ‘media-spin-doctor’ of PPP.
He revealed how a planted interview is conducted and that his show was not a “Planted Interview” in fact, it was an investigative interview. Revealing his ‘rocky relationship’ with Meher Bokhari, he taunted that this was not the right mix of journalists to conduct a planted interview. He said that him and Meher Bokhari -obviously- lacked the chemistry needed to conduct a planted interview, he said that both of them prepared separately for the interview and that every journalist in Pakistan wanted to be in his place.
He said that most guests try to pressure the host into asking questions that he or she wants to talk about. Blaming Dunya TV management for the off-air row between him and Meher Bokhari. Mubasher said that there was no angling in the interview, the only thing unfair about the interview was that he was told to do the interview with Meher Bokhari.
Mubasher Lucman raised allegations on the journalists who knew about Malik Riaz’s plans to go against the ChIEf Justice’s son. He said that people who knew about this affair months ago have not been held accountable. He said that they should be asked “Why didn’t they inform the Chief Justice about what Malik Riaz has told them 5 months ago?”
Mubasher also presented himself and his next to kin for accountability in the Supreme Court.
UPDATE: Hamid Mir ready to present himself for accountability
Renowned political talk show anchor Hamid Mir, in a private TV talk show on Friday, stated his connection with Malik Riaz was merely exaggerated as he had only met the business tycoon only twice. He further added that during both those meetings, Mir asked Malik Riaz to show him the documents regarding Arsalan Iftikhar’s case. “After witnessing the document, I was not convinced,” added Hamid Mir.
Talking about the bribery accusations and pointing towards another TV anchor, Mir added that he had been regularly targeted by a few journalists; even during the leaked interview.
“This is not the first time that I have been framed; I have been blamed to have received a villa from Malik Riaz. A couple of years earlier, I was blamed of owning a farm house near Islamabad. I have faced such baseless allegations in front of the concerned courts and have come out clean,” said the renowned TV anchor.
Talking about the fixed interview, Mir said it was a very serious issue in the form of a fixed interview to ridicule the judiciary.
Mir further stated that he would present himself for accountability whenever required. He stated that it was high time when each and every columnist, anchor and media owner should also come forward and present ‘themselves’ for proper accountability
Mir urged that a commission should be formed in order to investigate such matters. He also said that working journalists and media owners should come forward and present themselves for accountability via the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalist and APNS/PBA platform.
Hamid Mir is also one of the nineteen journalists named on the alleged bribery list.
By: Zuhaeb Nazir, Uploaded: 16th June 2012
UPDATE: Hassan Nisar says that SC has taken on too many powerful enemies and that they should have finished the job when they had the chance to.
Hassan Nisar says that SC has taken on too many powerful enemies and that they should have finished the job when they had the chance to. Speaking on a social media network site, Twitter, he said that “Let SC and CJ finally find all true criminals and sentence them accordingly. Let their be full accountability for all including all media.”
In a phone interview with Kamran Khan, he further went on to say that this corruption scandal of Rs 30-40 crore is just the tip of an iceberg. Calling it a mere trivial amount compared to the gigantic amounts of corruption that goes on in Pakistan “behind the curtains”.
He said that, “certain people in Lahore city, who have good relationships with politicians make Rs50-60 crore on yearly basis”. Hassan Nisar claimed that there are many sides to this one story and soon they will all be revealed.
Hassan Nisar is one of the 19 journalists accused of taking bribes from Malik Riaz.
A Private TV channel anchor, Talat Hussain, came forward with his talk show on Friday while interpreting the leaked interview of Malik Riaz. He termed his talk show as one of the difficult most programs in his career. He said that the leaked interview seemed an attack on judiciary and it seemed ‘fishy’ right from the beginning.
Mr. Hussain critically scrutinized the off-line interview leaked on You Tube. He mentioned that it was really difficult to go over time in any particular show as time is similar to gold within the TV industry and Malik Riaz was allowed the extra time, indicating support by the management of the TV channel interviewing the business tycoon.
Talat said that the management of the private TV channel interviewing the business tycoon had severe influence over Riaz’s interview. Besides the management, as per Talat’s comments, Malik Riaz had strong authority within the entire interview and he was dictating the questions to be asked from him.
Talat termed the interview as a pre-set rehearsed interview stating that both the interviewer and the interviewee knew their questions and answers very well. He further stated that the entire off-line video illustrated as if the interview was a meeting between relatives within the guest room of a house with the only exception that questions and face expressions were intensified and changed as soon as the camera was turned on to make the show go live. Talat labeled the interview as fabricated stating that “if this interview was not fabricated and planted than there would be no interview in the world to be deemed as fabricated or planted.”
“This is not the professional way to interview a person who is defaming the judiciary of a country,” stated Talat.
Talking about the anchors of the show, Mubashar Lucman and Mehar Bukhari, Talat stated that the behavior did not seem appropriate. “No professional interview allows the guest to dictate the terms of an interview,” added Talat.
Talat in his TV show also pointed out towards two separate incidents within the leaked video whereby the association of Malik Riaz with the powerful families of Pakistan (Gilanis and the Sharifs) came as a major surprise for the people of the country.
Talat, while concluding his program, stated that he was hurt by the leaked interview as a journalist and further added that the credibility of both the judiciary and the journalists had been immensely dented by the leaked interview.
Earlier, a list of 19 journalists made a buzz within the social media and the local TV channels with respect to accusations of receiving money from Bahria town owner, Malik Riaz.
UPDATE: Dr. Shahid Masood’s quirky response to Bahria Town List accusations.
Renowned TV anchor, Dr Shahid Masood on Thursday, responded to the inclusion of his name within the list of 19 journalists alleged of being bribed by the Bahria Town owner, Malik Riaz.
According to the list, Dr. Shahid Masood, was financed for 7 trips to Dubai along with other monetary incentive. The anchor has responded to this accusation by tweeting on his personal account on the social networking website “Twitter”. He has tweeted that he is living in Dubai for the last ten years further asking Malik Riaz to blame him (Shahid Masood) in a better way in the future.
Dr. Masood has also pointed out in his tweet that a media guy was involved in bringing up the list and that particular media guy was on the payroll of Malik Riaz.
Dr. Masood also opined that PTI was not involved in bringing up the list and that a close aide (having strong media affiliation) of Malik Riaz was the main actor in the entire scenario.
By: Zuhaeb Nazir, Uploaded: 15th June 2012
UPDATE: Meher Bokhari explains the leaked footage; denies bribery allegations.
By: Zuhaeb Nazir, Uploaded: 15th June 2012
The notorious “Media Gate” scandal involving business tycoon Malik Riaz and private TV anchors Mehar Bukari and Mubahsar Lucman has created a wave within the nation. Many questions have been posed with a finger being pointed onto the credibility of journalists.Almost 19 journalist are mentioned on the so-called “Media Gate” list.
Mehar Bukhari, the main accused in the video leaked on YouTube, came forward with a TV program show on Thursday. The private TV anchor, during her TV show, clarified her position while labeling the video posting on the internet as an act of robbery.
Mehar Bukhari said that is a normal ritual within the media industry to listen to the demands of the guest who is being interviewed. “Whoever comes to an interview do have their own requirements, they want to be asked certain questions and we as anchors have to oblige them,” said Mehar.
“If the interview was planted, then why me and Lucman had to co-ordinate the entire program during the break of the live show. If it was a planted interview, it should have been planned way earlier,” stated Mehar Bukhari
Mehar Bukhari added that her name on the letter head of Bahria Town would be investigated and the other journalists mentioned on the list would also take appropriate action against the accusations. She added that the entire list of journalists, after proper legal consultation, may file for defamation against Malik Riaz and she in person would go to court against the business tycoon
Qamar Zaman Kaira was brought in to help with the clarification of Mehar Bukhari. The Federal Information Minister stated that during breaks of live TV programs, politicians and journalist chat normally, joking as if conversing with friends. This is because they know each other quiet well.
Kaira further stated that this interview could not have been planned because if the program would have been planted then why the two anchor, Mehar and Mubashir, were found arguing with each other with respect to the pattern and the questions to be asked during the talk show.
Kaira attested Mehar’s claim that questions are asked on the request of the guest and the anchors of such talk shows do oblige these requests, stating it to be a normal procedure.
The video posting on the internet was deemed illegal and unconstitutional by Kaira.
Khawaja Mohammad Asif was also called upon during the show and he also defended Mehar Bukhari by stating that although a nexus seemed somewhat visible between Lucman, Malik Riaz and Abdul Qadir Gilani; Mehar Bukhari seemed a victim to fall under the eclipse of the entire scenario.
Mehar Bukari ended her clarification by adding that she did not receive any instructions with respect to the questions, the only instructions that she was given was no to harass the guest and give him space to talk freely. She added that normal discussions were made during the interview; such discussions are a normal routine work during such interviews. She finally swore that neither her management nor ‘she in person’ were involved in planting the interview.
“If I lie or if I have received a single penny or a single yard of any land from Malik Riaz, may Allah reveal His wrath upon me,” she added.
UPDATE: Kamran Khan has denied the allegations brought forward against him.
After the leaked videos of Mubasher Lucman and Meher Bukhari’s live show with Malik Riaz became public via YouTube. A feeling of confusion and mistrust has taken over the country. It wasn’t just the leaked footage that manifested this political sandstorm which has forced every powerful and influential man or woman in Pakistan to sit duck and let it pass.
Breaking this newly formed pattern, one of the most senior journalist of Pakistan, Kamran Khan went live on TV last night and gave his point of view about the “MediaGate” scandal.
On his live TV show Aaj Kamran Khan Kay Saath, Kamran Khan denied the allegations that he has been paid by the real estate kingpin, Malik Riaz, who is the owner of Bahria Town Housing Scheme and accuser, in Arsalan Iftikhar graft case.
Kamran Khan kicked off by firstly suggesting that the people of Pakistan should calm down and grab this window of opportunity to hold everyone accountable once in for all.
He said, “Why not start with accountability of media first” followed by clipped recordings of the leaked footage of Meher-Lucman show.
He presented key parts of the leaked footage in his show where Meher and Lucman are clearly seen taking instructions from both PPP and PMLN “spin-doctors”, while repetitively trying to exceed each other in Malik Riaz’s good books.
After airing the footage Kamran Khan said that, “as media representative, our heads are held down in shame.”
With a smirk-like tone of voice Kamran Khan aired a key moment in the footage where Meher Bukhari refers to him and his colleague Hamid Mir by saying that she didn’t care what the “Hamids and Kamrans” were getting (as bribe).
Kamran Khan then proposed Accountability of every institutions, claiming that a better opportunity will not come again. He said that Media should be held accountable first and that he presents himself for accountability before anyone else.
He proposed that the time has come when Media, Lawyers, Politicians, Judges and Army Generals should be accountable for their actions. He went on to claim that he is willing to be the first media personality to submit his own financial records and even of people related or close to him.
He also mentioned that people will be gravely shocked if he revealed the names of journalists who claimed to fight against dictators, but at the same time were having the time of their life by going on foreign trips with the same dictators.
Kamran Khan went on to suggest a board of people who will judge and hold everyone accountable. He proposed the names of former Supreme Court judge, (retd) Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid, (retd) Justice Fakhruddin Ibrahim and former Foreign Minister Dr Mubashir Hassan.
Kamran Khan assured his fans and followers that he was innocent of the allegations brought against him and proclaimed that if every media personality was held accountable a very few would turn out to be “cleaner” than him. However he did not talk about or mention the list.
The list that features names of 19 most senior journalists of Pakistani News Television industry, also includes Kamran Khan’s name in it. Names of nineteen senior-journalists are in that list along with the alleged payments and “gifts” given to them supposedly in return for Media related favors by Bahria Town owner Malik Riaz.
Nusrat Javed and Mushtaq Minhas, two of the 19 accused journalists, went live on Aaj Tv last night and denied the bribery allegations against them by announcing the leaked list as a fake list.
Nusrat Javed in a taunty-sarcastic manner read out the record of transactions from the list and said that it is all a conspiracy fabricated by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf’s (PTI) Media Cell and called them “Cyber-Bullies”.
In a rowdy change of mood, he expressed his outrage over the Social Media activists of PTI. Anger and loud allegations took over the show for a while, as Mushtaq Minhas kept mumbling incomplete words trying to settle Nusrat Javed down.
Nusrat Javed challenged the PTI to ask their party member Sarwar Khan from Taxila, to hold a press conference and say that Malik Riaz has a “flawed character”.
“They will never do it” he claimed.
Nusrat claimed that he knew who was behind these allegations and that he doesn’t need the police or the courts to help him, he will fight his own fight and deal with those people all by himself.
In response to Nusrat Javed’s angry allegations, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf posted a reply to Nusrat Javedon their website, stating that PTI had nothing to do with the leaked list of journalists and that the party respects the senior journalists and had no interest in maligning their names.
June 19th, 2012 |
Pakistani journalists who took money from Malik Riaz for favoring the Malik Riaz and his group. A record of payments allegedly made to 19 senior-journalists of Pakistan, by the Bahria Town owner Malik Riaz has surfaced on the social networking site Twitter, Aaj News reported. An account of favors allegedly given to these journalists in shapes of money, cars and property etc is recorded in these trademarked letterheads of Bahria Town.
Posted by admin in Pakistan-A Nation of Hope on April 16th, 2014
LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has decided in principle to revive all the corruption references pending against Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif and other members of their family which had been adjourned indefinitely in December 2000 after the Sharifs signed an exile deal with the Musharraf regime and left Pakistan for Saudi Arabia.
According to well-informed NAB officials, of the three corruption references currently pending against Nawaz Sharif and his family members, NAB would first take up the case titled ‘State Vs Hudabiya Paper Mills (Pvt) Ltd’ in which nine members of the Sharif family are accused of committing money laundering to the tune of Rs642.743 million.
According to the NAB findings, the Sharif family members allegedly deposited ill-gotten money in fake accounts which were opened in other persons’ names and used the money from these accounts to pay off loans of the defaulting Sharif companies. Mian Muhammad Sharif, Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif, Mian Abbas Sharif, Hussain Nawaz, Hamza Shahbaz, Mrs Shamim Akhtar (mother of Nawaz Sharif), Mrs Sabiha Abbas, Mrs Maryam Safdar (daughter of Nawaz Sharif) and the former finance minister of the Sharif cabinet, Ishaq Dar, are the main accused in the Hudabiya Paper Mills reference.
As per law, the NAB will have to file an application before the accountability court for reopening of the corruption references, which is set to open a Pandora’s box for the Sharif brothers, in view of a 43-page hand-written statement recorded by Senator Ishaq Dar and accusing the Sharifs of involvement in money laundering.
As per the statement which Ishaq Dar had recorded before a Lahore district magistrate on April 25, 2000, the Sharif brothers used the Hudaibya Paper Mills as cover for money laundering during the late 1990s. Dar’s statement was recorded as part of the Musharraf regime’s plans to file a money laundering reference against Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif. However, the reference was shelved after the Sharif family opted for self exile in 2000, once they came to know that their trusted Ishaq Dar has turned approver against them.
Ishaq Dar’s confessional statement against the Sharif brothers was reportedly recorded before a district magistrate in Lahore, after he was brought to the court from a jail by Basharat Shahzad, then serving as assistant director in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
NAB circles say Ishaq Dar’s deposition is an irrevocable statement because it had been recorded under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Ishaq Dar now happens to be high-profile PML-N leader who has always been considered close to the Sharif brothers. Senator Ishaq Dar’s son, Ali Dar, is married to Nawaz Sharif’s daughter, Asma Nawaz.
Dar had confessed in his 43-page statement: “I opened two foreign currency accounts in the name of Sikandara Masood Qazi and Talat Masood Qazi with the foreign currency funds provided by the Sharif family in the Bank of America by signing as Sikandara Masood Qazi and Talat Masood Qazi. All instructions to the bank in the name of these two persons were signed by me under the orders of original depositors, namely Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif. The foreign currency accounts of Nuzhat Gohar and Kashif Masood Qazi were opened in Bank of America by Naeem Mehmood under my instructions (based on the directives of the Sharifs) by signing the same as Nuzhat Gohar and Kashif Masood Qazi”.
According to Dar’s confessional statement, besides these foreign currency accounts, a previously opened foreign currency account of Saeed Ahmed, a former director of First Hajvari Modaraba Company and close friend of Dar, and of Mussa Ghani, the nephew of Dar’s wife, were also used to deposit huge foreign currency funds provided by the Sharif family to offer them as collateral to obtain different direct and indirect credit lines. Dar had further conceded that the Bank of America, Citibank, Atlas Investment Bank, Al Barka Bank and Al Towfeek Investment Bank were used under the directives of the Sharif family. Interestingly enough, Dar also implicated himself by confessing before the district magistrate that he – along with his friends Kamal Qureshi and Naeem Mehmood – had opened fake foreign currency accounts in different international banks.
The News made frantic efforts to approach Ishaq Dar and after making several phone calls the brief response received from Mr Dar stated: “This is all rubbish. The Hudabiya Paper Mills case is nothing but trash. The matter is sub judice in the High Court and facts would be known to public in due course. All transactions were duly reported to the State Bank of Pakistan as per law of the land”.
However, a senior PML-N leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the credibility of a confessional statement recorded under pressure and coercion, and that too by the officials of a military regime, will always be doubtful and remain questionable.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik has already taken up the same money laundering case at a press conference in Islamabad on Saturday. Giving details about the scam, he said the Hudabiya Paper Mills Limited, owned by the Sharif family, entered into a leasing contract with M/s Al Towfeek Company for investment funds under the laws of the Cayman Islands on February 15, 1995 for lease of paper manufacturing machinery. The leasing price was $12.046 million. Rehman Malik said Shahbaz Sharif and Abbas Sharif and another, provided guarantee in writing to pay jointly and severally to the leasing company, all sums due against the Hudabiya Paper Mills under any agreement up to a maximum of $10 million with all profits and charges. On February 15, 1995, Shahbaz Sharif provided a further guarantee to pay on demand to the leasing company any such due against the Hudabiya Paper Mills up to a maximum of $12.046 million together with all profits and charges.
As the Hudabiya Paper Mills Limited failed to pay back the amount, M/s Al Towfeek Company served a demand on the Sharif family members on July 31, 1998 to repay the sum. However, all the three guarantors failed to honour their guarantees and to make payment on behalf of their company. Subsequently, on March 18, 1999, the High Court of Justice, Queens Bench Division (London) ordered the Sharifs to jointly pay a sum of $32.5 million (around Rs1.7 billion) to Al-Towfeek Company for Funds Ltd, the investment company from which they had taken a loan for Hudabiya Paper Mills Ltd. The London High Court passed the ex-parte order as the defendants – Hudabiya Paper Mills Ltd, Mian Mohammad Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif, and Abbas Sharif – had not defended themselves in the court.
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