ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Zardari and his sister Faryal Talpur have rejected the findings of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) in the fake bank accounts case, terming it “fake and misleading” and an attempt to “malign, demean and defame” the party leadership.

In their 15-page reply to the JIT report submitted to the Supreme Court, Mr Zardari and Ms Talpur deny all allegations levelled in the JIT report, saying no wrongdoings have been done by them.

The JIT that probed the Rs35 billion fake accounts case had requested the Supreme Court on Saturday to order freezing of assets of the Zardari Group Pvt Ltd — including Bilawal House in Karachi and Lahore and Zardari House in Islamabad — as well as those of the Omni Group.

PPP leaders in a reply submitted to Supreme Court say the findings are aimed at tarnishing their image

Both groups, the JIT claimed in its report, had amassed assets through misappropriation of loans, government funds, kickbacks and proceeds of crime.

In their reply, the PPP leaders say innumerable documents and statements of witnesses recorded by the JIT have not been provided to them.

“The JIT report and the executive summary are based on surmises and conjectures and are outcome of political victimisation. The entire report and the executive summary are based on misleading facts and without perusal of documents and without even affording a proper opportunity to the respondents to give appropriate reply which is violation of Article 10-A of the constitution,” the PPP leaders say, adding “there cannot be a fair trial without fair investigation which is paramount for due process of law.”

They say the JIT report has ignored “replies and answers, justifications and defences given in reply to questions mentioned in questionnaires sent to Zardari Group (Pvt) Ltd, Asif Zardari, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Faryal Talpur with mala fide intentions to make out a false, fabricated and concocted case against them”.

The respondents term most of the findings and recommendations of the JIT as “beyond the mandate” given to it by the Supreme Court, asking the court to reject them.

“At all material times, the JIT was biased towards Zardari Group (Pvt) Ltd., Asif Zardari and Faryal Talpur,” says the reply, adding that the JIT report is “completely baseless and allegations against the PPP leadership have been levelled to malign them before the voters of their respective constituencies... and amongst party workers in specific and people of Pakistan in general”.

According to the PPP leaders, “it is apparent from the proceedings of the JIT that it has been in collusion with the government [and] that the end results were pre-determined.”

“This is proved by blatant manipulation by JIT... and the leaking of details of JIT [report] to media and ministers in violation of the Supreme Court’s orders,” they say.

Moreover, “There is no lawful basis for the JIT to recommend inquiry or investigation or reference before accountability courts.” The only reason for such recommendation, according to the PPP leaders, is to obtain a stamp of the Supreme Court.

“Any such order passed by this court would be in absolute violation of Article 10-A of the Constitution, including the basic fundamental right of respondents to a fair trial and fair investigation,” they state.

It is alleged that the JIT has worked as a tool for the federal government to malign Mr Zardari, Mr Bhutto-Zardari and Ms Talpur and to tarnish reputation of the PPP.

“In doing so the JIT has exceeded its mandate, it has encroached upon and exceeded its jurisdiction with mala fide intent and with ulterior motives to give support to the ruling party – the PTI,” the PPP leaders say.

“In utter violation of/in contempt of the orders passed by this court, the JIT... deliberately provided false information to the media,” they say. “This resulted in a vicious media trial aimed at not only poisoning the minds of general public but also with the intent to deny the respondents a fair opportunity to defend themselves at different forums.”

Consequently, the PPP leaders say, the “veracity of the report has become doubtful and tainted which is further substantiated by the briefings given by the... ministers and advisers to the media”.

The PPP leaders say the allegation that M/S Park Lane Pvt Ltd has beneficial ownership of Mr Zardari and Mr Bhutto-Zardari is “incorrect”. “Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was made shareholder of M/S Park Lane on August 31, 1989, when he was a minor.”

They claim the JIT had failed to establish any link of the “fake accounts” with the Zardari family and or the group.

The allegation that M/S Parthenon is merely a front company of M/S Park Lane is incorrect as both of them are private limited companies registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and have separate business interests, shareholders and directors, they say. Members of Zardari Group have no interest in M/S Parthenon.”

The PPP leaders say it has been falsely reported by the JIT regarding the proprietary influence of the Zardari family over the National Bank of Pakistan and the Summit Bank since the JIT has relied upon a copy of the alleged letter from Muhammad Bilal Sheikh, president/CEO of Sindh Bank, to Faryal Talpur. The letter was not provided to Ms Talpur.

Moreover, they say, the JIT has maliciously recommended an investigation against Mr Zardari, Mr Bhutto-Zardari and others. “No evidence is available with the JIT to recommend even inquiry in the matter of M/S Park Lane and M/S Parthenon or against the Zardari Group and the Zardari family, the documents attached to the list of documents are fabricated and denied being baseless, malicious and false”.

The JIT report expresses the opinion that Mr Zardari “not only orchestrated this fraudulent misappropriation but is also the ultimate beneficiary...”

“The said opinion of the JIT is based on assumptions and surmises and the statement as such has been made for the sake of it without any documentary evidence, thus this court may be pleased to reject the said fabricated opinion of the JIT,” the respondents say.

“The allegations of expenditure of allegedly laundered monies by the Zardari family in paragraph 137 to 148 are vehemently denied. As far as payment for cement is concerned Faryal Talpur as an answer to the questionnaire sent by the JIT to her denied payment by her for any cement for the construction of her house. Her version does not appear in the JIT report which shows malice on the part of the team.

“In paragraph 140 allegations have been made against Asif Ali Zardari only because the JIT allegedly found a hard disk in which reference can be found to ‘Baray Sahab’ and the JIT is of the view that Asif Zardari is ‘Baray Sahab’ and such baseless argument of JIT is denied being based on assumptions.”

The allegations against Mr Zardari regarding mis-declaration of two vehicles in his nomination papers is also “incorrect”, the PPP leaders say and request the court to reject it.

They allege that the JIT has manufactured a heading ” Hyper growth of Bahria Town South, with the collusion of Sindh government and the kickbacks received by Mr Asif Zardari and Ms Faryal Talpur through fake accounts.”

“The heading has been manufactured in a way by the JIT to imply relation of Bahria Town with the Sindh government and the Zardari family” with mala fide intent, they say.

According to the PPP leaders, the JIT attempt to link payments with Zardari Group is misconceived and unjust exercise of power. It is a story with no evidence. Recommendations for an inquiry are uncalled for and illegal. The JIT has maliciously misrepresented joint venture agreement and thus has tried to shift the burden on the Zardari family.

The JIT has only mentioned growth of agricultural land of the Zardari family and linked it with the alleged kickbacks which is untrue, they say and request the court to reject the JIT stance.

The PPP leader’s reply says Mr Zardari has beneficial interests in only those properties and group(s) of which he is lawful owner/member and has declared the same with the institutions, including the Federal Board of Revenue.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2019