ISLAMABAD: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has instructed all banks in the country to provide details of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) foreign funding from 2009 to 2013 to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the Dawn local daily reported on Wednesday.
The directive was issued in response to an ECP letter written earlier this month that required the information from the central bank.
Under Pakistan’s constitution, all state institutions must help the election regulatory authority to make it possible for it to perform its responsibilities effectively.
The PTI foreign funding case acquired political significance when the party’s former central vice president, Akbar S. Babar, reported an alleged massive scam in funding coming from abroad. The ECP formed a committee in April to probe the issue.
But the PTI’s leaders and legal team refused to provide relevant financial details to the election body, making it difficult for the committee to perform an audit.
The party also approached the Islamabad High Court to declare the ECP’s decision to scrutinize its accounts null and void.
In this context, the election authority approached the SBP for PTI’s financial details, making the central bank issue instructions to all banks in the country to share all relevant information with the ECP directly. Babar has welcomed the SBP’s instructions, Dawn reported.
Banks directed to submit PTI’s foreign funding details to ECP
Banks directed to submit PTI’s foreign funding details to ECP
- The PTI foreign funding case acquired political significance when the party’s former central vice president, Akbar S. Babar, reported an alleged massive scam in funding coming from abroad
- A three-member ECP committee was constituted in April to probe the issue
