PML-N representatives continue tirade against JIT, political opponents

Published July 11, 2017
"How will Rasheed and Khan defend their speeches when the SC calls for their transcript," asks Daniyal Aziz
"How will Rasheed and Khan defend their speeches when the SC calls for their transcript," asks Daniyal Aziz

A day after the Panamagate joint investigation team (JIT) handed its report on the Sharif family's financial history to the Supreme Court (SC), PML-N frontmen continue to come up with a number of varied objections to the investigation as well as their opponents.

At a media talk on Tuesday, Talal Chaudhary, Danyal Aziz and Hanif Abbasi took turns to voice their concerns about the JIT report while threatening action against Imran Khan and Sheikh Rasheed

Talal Chaudhary

"Imran Khan, we have been brought to a point that we need to tell the world that your father was dismissed from his job for corruption," Chaudhary said while turning his guns on the PTI chief.

He added: "I would like to tell the nation that you [Imran] went to study on that money, you bought flats abroad with that money and you bought the Zaman Park property with the money that your father appropriated through corruption."

"The PML-N will only let the government go when the 16-million peoples' JIT says that we should go home; otherwise we are here to stay and prove your allegations false," Chaudhary said as he reiterated the party's stance on contesting the contents of the report.

Talking about the SC's call for PML-N leaders' speech transcripts, he said: "We respect the Supreme Court and are happy to provide them the documents and transcripts of speeches; but, eventually, because the law is the same for everyone, they will also ask for the transcripts of speeches made by other parties' representatives."

"How will Sheikh Rasheed defend all the things he has said about the JIT; how will he explain his comments about butchers and butcher shops," he added.

"How will Imran Khan defend his 'Umpire ki unghli khari honay wali hai' comment?"

"Everything that we have said was said in response to things that Khan, Rasheed and their people say, as we need to defend our perspective," Chaudhary claimed.

About the notice served to a media outlet for the way it reported on the JIT's final report, he said: "Not just one channel, all channels and all reporters should be brought to court for the way they reported on the JIT. They acted like they had private access to the JIT members' lives and sat under their chairs while the investigation was being conducted."

Discussing the party's course of action moving forward, Chaudhary said: "The JIT's report has a number of flaws and we will conduct a post mortem analysis of this report in the SC. We will bring the flaws to the fore but we will do it respectfully and keep the sanctity of the court intact."

Danyal Aziz

Discussing the JIT report's tenth volume, a volume that JIT members had wanted sealed and kept away from the public eye, Aziz said: "I will say the same thing I said yesterday: that the volume they wanted to keep secret has come out and it proves that this investigation is incomplete as it has the word 'ongoing' written over it."

He further alleged that "The JIT was given extra time and they lie on TV and n public and say that no extra time was given. The report should have been submitted on July 4, but the team submitted it on July 10."

"No matter how they try and defend themselves, even if they say they are including the weekends in the extra days, we know they were given extra time," he accused.

Raising questions about the JIT's integrity, Aziz said: "How is it that parts of the report that give weight to the anti-government narrative are leaked, while other parts remain safe? This is not the first time this is happening."

"You [the JIT] have woven a number of stories and are calling it evidence; but anyone who knows even a little bit about law knows that these stories do not hold any real value."

"From Volumes I to V, everything you say is about how the former Qatari prime minister's letter is flawed. Yet the only person whose statement, even after our insistence, you have not taken is the former Qatari PM."

Hanif Abbasi

Discussing the party's course of action against the opposition, Abbasi said: "Now we will drag Imran Khan into court and he needs to tell us what money he used to go to Oxford. He keeps telling us he has a money trail — does that trail answer this question?"

"Khan has submitted a document in the ECP where he says that there is a nearly 0.2 million pound transaction that he has no trail for and that he is 'trying' to procure it. Then why does he lie on TV?" he added.

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