ISLAMABAD: Perusal of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s financial documents by the chartered accountants hired by the petitioner in PTI foreign funding case continued on Tuesday for the second consecutive day.

The Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) order of April 14 had allowed the perusal of the PTI’s financial documents by the petitioner for eight days or 40 hours. The perusal time was extended by three days or 15 hours at the request of the petitioner in the PTI foreign funding case, Akbar S. Babar, one of the founding members of the party.

The perusal process is set to end on Wednesday (today) as the ECP in its order of May 25 has stated that no further extension will be granted.

Petitioner in foreign funding case vows to purge the party of corruption

Talking to reporters at the conclusion of Tuesday’s proceedings of the ECP scrutiny committee, Mr Babar said the PTI founders group comprising founding fathers of the party was united to purge the party of corruption and refocus it to its founding ideals.

Mr Babar said the foreign funding case was unique as never before founding members of a political party had stood up against their own party not for personal gain but collective good of society.

He said the principle is simple: “unless your hands are clean, you cannot point fingers at others”.

He said once overwhelming evidence of corruption and other financial irregularities was proved, the PTI would be purged of “corrupt and incompetent leadership”.

Mr Babar said the PTI of today was divided in several groups all fighting for the spoils of power except the founders group that sought no favour or relief from the government. “It only demands a return of the party to its founding ideals to rescue Pakistan’s society from crippling economic conditions that now endanger the sovereignty of the country as Pakistan is vulnerable to international economic blackmail”.

Mr Babar said the cat was out of the bag and could not be put back.

Published in Dawn, June 2nd, 2021