ISLAMABAD - Dispelling the impression that his case is identical to that of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday said that he brought his hard-earned money to Pakistan contrary, to the Sharif family that "looted public money and laundered it".
“This is a wrong impression that the case against me and the Sharif family are of the same nature. There is no comparison between the two,” he told the media at his Bani Gala residence.
“I brought money to Pakistan. I did not commit any crime… I brought money to Pakistan so there is no question of money laundering. Tax evasion [on my part], if any, should also be the concern of the government of the UK where I earned money from,” Khan explained.
In his tweet the same day, PTI chief said, “Shameful to make fabricated comparisons between NS [Nawaz Sharif], who is guilty of money laundering, tax evasion and assets concealment, and myself.”
On the issue of money trail, Imran Khan said that Jemima also provided decades old banking records of Bani Gala and all had been submitted before the Supreme Court.
“Unlike Sharif clan, my money trail is all there,” he claimed.
The opposition leader also challenged media report of the day that he failed to give money trail of his London flat to the Supreme Court.
Giving details of the money he earned by playing county cricket, Khan said he played cricket for Sussex for 11 years.
He said the whole trail of the money he earned from cricket - including benefit year in Sussex in 1987 – and used to purchase London flat had been provided to the Supreme Court.
The PTI chief also criticised Defence Minister Khawaja Asif by saying that he wanted to protect his leader’s corruption.
Replying to the allegations levelled by the defence minister against him, Imran Khan said people trust him, and that was why he received big amounts in charity from the public.
“I keep getting maximum [amounts of charity] for Shaukat Khanum Hospital and Numl University,” he claimed.
Early Panama verdict to
restore normalcy: Gilani
NNI adds: The Panama Papers case verdict should be announced as soon as possible so that normalcy can be restored in the country, said former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani.
“The Supreme Court of Pakistan should announce the final verdict as soon as possible to quell all speculations and rumours that have been surrounding Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif,” Gilani said while talking to the media in Multan on Sunday.
The ex-PM said that the PPP is an ideological party and will wait for the Supreme Court’s decision.
The PPP stalwart dispelled the impression about clash between state institutions, adding that the government should complete its mandated tenure, and the next general elections should be held in 2018. Gilani said that Prime Minister Sharif should take the nation into confidence if he believes that a conspiracy has been hatched against him. “The Supreme Court has reserved its verdict based on the JIT report, and all political parties are active over the matter” he said.
“A quick decision (by the Supreme Court) will normalise the situation in the country,” he claimed, adding that he is in favour of the government completing its tenure.
Talking about election reforms, Gilani said that all parties need to work for them. “Without election reforms, we cannot have transparent elections,” he pointed out, adding that the country need electoral reforms for real change.
The former PM was of the view that it is only the PPP that has actually represented the people of southern Punjab. “All the presidents, ministers and governors from this region were nominated by the PPP,” he claimed, adding that both the PML-N and PTI will give nothing to the region.
Gilani said that the safety and security of the nation is in safe hands. When asked about Indian spy Kulbushan Jadhav, Gilani pointed out that he was the first prime minister to have spoken about foreign interference in Balochistan.
He said that Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was a visionary leader who gave the nation the 1973 Constitution, and his services to make Pakistan a nuclear power cannot be ignored.
The PPP leader said that he has not yet pondered over running for the next election. About the party manifesto, he said that a committee has been formed to form a successful one which will be fully implemented.