Khattak urges youth to attend Islamabad PTI rally

NOWSHERA: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak has termed youth as vanguard of Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf, hoping thousands of workers would participate in party’s foundation day gathering at the federal capital on April 24.

“The party’s foundation day would be a historical gathering and thousands of party workers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would participate in it,” The chief minister said while addressing a workers’ convention at Hujra of Malik Ibrar at Badrashi here on Wednesday.

On the occasion, MNA Dr Imran Khattak, district nazim Laiqat Khan Khattak, naib nazim Malik Ibrar Khan and MPA Khaleaqur Rehman were also present.

The chief minister said PTI had fulfilled all promises it made with the people in general elections. He claimed that power had been transferred to grassroots level after local bodies’ elections and now people’s problems would be solved at their doorstep. He said now people would not have to go after MNAs and MPAs for solving their problems.

The chief minister said they had announced a new industrial policy and added that industrial zones would be established in all the districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Article via: dawn

PTI Seeks to Bring Offshore Assets in Law's Ambit

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistan Tahreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker suggested on Tuesday to amend the Benami transactions prohibition bill, calling for the inclusion of information about foreign properties owned by Pakistanis through offshore companies.

The proposal was submitted by Asad Umar, a PTI MNA from NA-48, Islamabad, in a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance that was called to discuss the government-sponsored bill.

Panama Papers: Sharifs should come clean on assets: Aleem

Chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Mohammad Nisar did not answer any of the questions raised by PTI and Pakistan Peoples Party lawmakers.

The lawmakers asked if the FBR was doing anything to probe 200 people who had been accused of holding assets in foreign countries through offshore companies.His only answer to their queries was that the FBR would give a detailed briefing in the next meeting of the committee.

However, he said that in the next budget, the FBR planned to bring certain amendments in the law to plug loopholes that could be exploited to transfer money.

The standing committee also gave a one-week deadline to the State Bank of Pakistan to provide information about individuals and companies who had invested abroad with the permission of central bank.

PTI chief calls for probe into Sharif family assets

Chairman of the committee Qaiser Ahmad Sheikh warned that if the central bank did not provide the information within the specified time, the committee might opt to use its judicial powers.

The standing committee did not discuss the Benami bill in detail and kept the matter pending till the next meeting.

The benami transactions are defined as an arrangement where a person on behalf of another person, who has paid for it, holds a property. It also includes transactions made under fictitious names.

The bill prohibits all persons from entering into benami transactions.

Imran invested Shaukat Khanum donations in offshore companies: PML-N leader

Once enacted, the government will have the authority to confiscate benami properties and violators could face imprisonment terms of up to seven years, said Rehmatullah Wazir, the FBR’s Member, Inland Revenue Policy.

He said that tax authorities were perturbed by the problem and experience suggested that such transactions were often used for evading taxes. Wazir said that a similar law was in operation in India for almost two decades.

Article via: tribune

Govt Trying to Blackmail Opposition, Says Imran Khan

Lahore: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has come out hard against the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) for trying to blackmail the opposition with corruption charges for their criticism of the Sharif family over the Panama Papers leaks.

Addressing a press conference at the PTI secretariat in Lahore on Wednesday, Imran expressed his disappointment at how Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan accused Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Khursheed Shah of corruption.

PM Puts Rumour Mill to Rest

“It is your (government’s) responsibility to apprehend them (corrupt politicians) instead of blackmailing (opposition members),” Imran said while responding to Nisar’s press conference held earlier in the day. “This is what the opposition does, not the government.” The PTI chief said that if the government has evidence of corruption, it should act instead of resorting to blackmail.

Imran also dismissed Nisar’s stance that the PM was not answerable over the leaks which had revealed that three of Nawaz’s children owned offshore companies.

“Don’t disgrace yourself by defending the corruption of your leaders,” the PTI chief said as he claimed that Nawaz was involved in tax evasion and corruption, breaking laws of the country and demanded a clarification from the prime minister.

Govt Rejects Imran Khan's Demand to Address Nation on State Television

“They (corrupt politicians) come into power, make money, steal tax, invest abroad and then use the stolen money to contest in elections” he said alleging that the same money was used to ‘buy’ the election commission as well as judges to rig the elections and reiterated his demand for a judicial commission headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan.

He also criticised protests by PML-N supporters outside his former wife Jemima Goldsmith’s house in England.

“What will you demand from this protest outside her house?” he mocked.

Responding to threats from the PML-N to march onto Bani Gala if the PTI marched to Raiwind, Imran brushed it aside by stating, “they are only blackmailing us”.

Appreciating comments of Pakistan Peoples Party’s Senator Aitzaz Ahsan, Imran hinted at working with other stakeholders over his Raiwind protest. He urged citizens to join his movement arguing that it was the collective responsibility of the nation to demand accountability adding that he did not want to make the Raiwind protest a ‘PTI show’ only.

‘Will March Towards Raiwind If Panama Papers Revelations Not Probed Independently'

Imran held a high level meeting with parliamentary and provincial leaders of the PTI to formalise a strategy for the party’s 20th Foundation Day. Deliberations were also held regarding activities ahead of the Raiwind march as well as the strategy for the protest movement.

He urged party workers to gather in Islamabad on April 24. Earlier, while speaking at an event in Lahore, Imran said allegations being levelled against the charity-run Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital by PML-N were only attempts to hide their own corruption.

Article via: tribune