The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Tuesday reserved its decision in the PTI prohibited funding case. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja heard the case. Petitioner Akbar S Babar’s financial expert, Arsalan Wardag, said the PTI received funding from the US, UK, Canada and Australia and had 11 accounts that it acknowledged it had not disclosed.
Moreover, the PTI never disclosed the source of many of the funds received from abroad, he continued.
The CEC remarked that PTI lawyer Anwar Mansoor Khan had given his arguments about the lack of details of donors, that they were not required by law at the time the funds were received.
Akbar S Babar retorted that the electoral watchdog had the opportunity to hold political parties accountable and set an example. The ECP’s commissioner stated that democracy was the most vital tenet of the country and must be strengthened by restoring voter confidence.
“We will make sure that justice is done to all. I am grateful to both sides. I have learned a lot,” the commissioner added, says a news report He stated that the case was a matter of national interest and soon cases of other parties would also be finalized. “We will ensure that no one is discriminated against.” Last week, Raja had directed the ECP staff to list the foreign finding case against the PTI as “prohibited funding” from now onwards after accepting the party’s stance on the matter.
As the proceedings started, PTI’s counsel Anwar Mansoor Khan maintained that the ECP’s cause list still referred to the case as foreign funding instead of “prohibited funding”. “My stance since day one is that this is a case of prohibited funding and not foreign funding,” Khan said. The CEC noted that Khan’s stance was correct and directed the ECP staff not to list the case as foreign funding.
The PTI’s counsel had earlier argued that the Political Parties Order 2002 and not Elections Act 2017 would apply to the prohibited funding case. According to PPO, money received from foreign governments and multinational and local companies would be considered foreign funding, he said. Under Election Act 2017, receiving money other than Pakistani citizens was prohibited, he added. “The 2002 law applies to all cases till 2017.”
Meanwhile, CEC Sultan Raja thanked the parties for cooperating and providing details. “We have to restore the voters’ trust and strengthen the country democratically,” he said. He said that the cases of other parties will also be concluded soon and the Commission will ensure that there is no discrimination. Speaking to the media outside the ECP, Babar said that restoring the confidence of voters will bring a positive change in the country’s politics.
Babar said a verdict being reserved is a welcome development and that he hopes for success. “I hope that the decision in this case will bring a revolution in the country,” he added. The former PTI leader said that the goal behind pursuing the case was to set an example for all political parties. “Imran Khan’s cousin kept supporting us in the case while we faced pressure and restrictions,” he said. Babar went on to say that the former government ruined the country’s economy.
“Imran Khan considers himself above accountability,” he said. Meanwhile, Babar’s lawyer said that there was no personal interest vested in bringing a case against the PTI in the Election Commission. The aim was for detailed investigations to be conducted on the prohibited funding of political parties. He said that 20,000 Australian dollars, 27,000 Euros, besides other large sums of money were transferred to the PTI’s accounts. PTI leader Farrukh Habib said that the ECP acknowledged that this was a case of prohibited funding. He said that the party had a record of 40,000 donors.
