ISLAMABAD: In what seems to be a tit-for-tat response, the government is trying to tighten the noose around Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief Dr Tahirul Qadri, who has vowed to launch a movement to topple the incumbent PML-N regime.

The government seems to be using the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to twist the arm of one of its biggest critics, who recently arrived from Canada.

After initiating the inquiry against Dr Qadri, the FIA contacted the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to obtain information regarding Dr Qadri and PAT’s tax returns, along with the details of his and his party’s assets.

“We have received a letter from the FIA today, in which the agency has sought the details of the assets belonging to Dr Qadri and his party,” a senior ECP official told Dawn.

He said that Dr Qadri had contested elections in 2002, thus the details of his assets were available in the official gazette issued 12 years ago. However, he and his party did not take part in the 2013 elections, thus the records are not up-to-date.

The official said that the details would be provided to the FIA.

Meanwhile, FIA Islamabad Director Iman Ghani refused to give details of the investigation being conducted by the agency.

“I have no knowledge about it, because no such investigation has been launched by FIA Islamabad,” he claimed.

Dr Qadri returned to the country from Canada on Monday soon after a tragic incident that took place in Model Town Lahore in which 12 workers of PAT were killed in a clash with the Punjab police. At this, Dr Qadri vowed to take revenge for the blood of his workers by toppling the government, through what he called a ‘revolution’.

Published in Dawn, June 27th, 2014