Imran declares assets, asks others to show guts
ISLAMABAD - Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan has said that his party would launch a civil disobedience movement if the top leadership of PPP and PML-N do not declare their real assets, as he did on Sunday.
Sharing the details of his assets, Imran said, declaration of real assets by the politicians was imperative to shun the practice of corruption and make the country financially strong.
Addressing a news conference here at PTI Central Secretariat on Sunday after chairing PTIs core committee meeting, where it was decided to appoint newcomer to party Shah Mehmood Qureshi as PTI Vice Chairman, Imran predicted that top leadership of other political parties (PPP and PML-N) would not made public their real assets as it would lead to surfacing of their corruption.
Imran said that PTIs core committee had decided that all the central executive committee members of PTI would declare their assets. Providing the sale deed, revenue record and other necessary documents of his assets to media, Imran said, he had purchased 300 kanals of land in Islamabad at the rate of Rs 145000 per kanal in 2002 in the name of Jamima Khan, his ex-wife, after borrowing money from her for the purpose.
Later, in 2003 I sold my flat in London, which I had purchased from the money I earned being star cricketer of my time, against 715,000 British pounds sterling to return the loan of my wife, he said.
He also said that his wife gifted him the land in Bani Gala, Islamabad, when they ended up in divorce in 2004.
Regarding land in Mian Channu, Imran said, he had inherited 530 kanals of land from his grandfather. PML-N was propagating that I had purchased the said land for Rs50000. I want to clarify that it was the amount I paid on the account of development charges of the land.
Imran said that he was given two separate plots by PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharrif, first one being declared man of the series against Indian team in 1987, and the second one in 1992 being captain of the team that had won the World Cup.
I have gifted both the plots to Shaukat Khanam Hospital in 1993 and later the hospital sold one of the plots in 1997 to generate some revenue to run the affairs of the hospital. The plot I was given in 1992 was directly transferred to Shaukat Khanam hospital upon my request to the then Prime Minister, he added.
He said that he had given a loan of Rs350 million donation to Shaukat Khanam hospital; the amount includes the money hospital earned by selling the plot I was given in 1993.
I looked after the affairs of hospital for five years and neither me nor any of the members of the board of governors ever took a single penny from the accounts of the hospital. A PML-N MNA who has levelled charges against the members of the board of governors of the hospital would be served with legal notices soon, Imran said.
In 1992 Nawaz Sharif government had introduced Economic Reforms Act. The act provides that all foreign remittance would be exempted from any sort of tax. Yes, it is true that I paid less tax this year than I had paid previous years but it is because of the act introduced by Nawaz Sharrif, he added.
Today I think that the Economic Reforms Act is not justifiable, as it hindered the way of tax collections. The act was introduced for himself by Nawaz to evade tax, Imran said.
He said by producing these documents he just wanted to clarify his position in the eyes of the masses and the media. Imran Khan has clarified his position today and other politicians should do in the same way, he said.
Only 8.2 percent Pakistanis pay their taxes. The figure ranks us among the lowest among tax evader nations. By collecting tax we could bring the country out of prevailing starvation, he added.
I will request the activists of other political parties to ask their respective leaderships that how they earned so much money and why their tax payment is so low, he added.
He said that all the aforementioned assets were registered in his name and not on his family members name as per practice of other political leaders.
Answering a question, Imran also criticised the incumbent government for not implementing the decisions of the Supreme Court.
To a question, Imran called for in-depth investigations into a statement recently given by the former Ambassador to US Hussain Haqqani regarding his meeting with the British army chief.
The statement should be taken seriously, as Haqqani was able to meet British Army Chief after having prior permission from one of the offices of President, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister or Secretary Foreign Office, as per diplomatic protocol, he added.
He also termed Mansoor Ijazs disclosure that both President Zardari and Hussain Haqqani were aware of the US May 2 raid in Abbottabad as an allegation of serious nature that should be probed.
To another question, he said in a bid to clarify the situation that which party was taking money from ISI, Supreme Court should take up the Asghar Khan case.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi, addressing on the occasion, criticized the statement of President Zardari in harsh words that he was the spiritual son of PPP founder Zulfikar Bhutto. Today, we can see those politicians, who always opposed and mentally teased daughter of Zulfikar Bhutto, as part of the federal cabinet and close aides of President Zardari.
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