ISLAMABAD - The Scrutiny Committee of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has summoned Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) on October 14 and 15 in foreign funding case respectively.

The committee through a notice has summoned both PPP and PML-N on October 14 and the ruling party on October 15 in the foreign funding case.The committee has also sent notice to the petitioner Akbar S Baber and Farukh Habib to appear and before the committee for further proceedings. The committee in last meeting had asked for the details of accounts of PTI in State Bank of Pakistan in PTI foreign funding case.

The Scrutiny Committee in PTI foreign funding case in last week of September had started fresh investigations into the case after the ECP had rubbished the report submitted by the committee to the commission earlier. The scrutiny report was prepared after over 70 meetings and two and half years of committee deliberations that was initially mandated to be complete scrutiny in one month.

The petitioner and PTI founding member Akbar S. Babar has consistently challenged the transparency and credibility of the scrutiny process.  The ECP in case against PML-N and PPP in its order had reprimanded the committee by stating that “it was the duty and responsibility of the committee to scrutinise the authenticity and reliability and credibility of each and every document submitted by both parties and after proper scrutiny of documents.”

The ECP on October 2 had directed the Scrutiny Committee in foreign funding case against PML-N and PPP to submit the final report until November 5. According to the latest report of the commission both the parties have failed to provide details of the donors to the commission.  The  report further revealed that due to the incomplete information and details with the Scrutiny Committee the commission was in no position to announce the verdict in the case. The report further elaborated that both the political parties were delaying the progress of the committee by asking again and again for more time in providing the relevant details to the committee. The commission has also authorised the Scrutiny Committee for independent collection of details in the case and also empowered the committee to use all the resources in finishing the task with no further delay and take action under Article 6 of the commission in case of non-provision of details.