ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has granted time to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to submit reply in a case filed by Hanif Abbasi regarding the offshore companies of Imran and Jehangir Tareen.
A three-member bench headed by Justice Saqib Nisar heard the case. During the hearing, Imran’s counsel Naeem Bukhari said, “I came to know through media that I am the lawyer in this case so give me time to submit reply.”
Abbasi’s counsel Sheikh Ikram requested the court to make a larger bench. Justice Nisar said the chief justice (CJ) was not in Islamabad, adding that he will return next week. He also said the CJ would decide in this regard. The court adjourned the hearing until November 30.
During the hearing, Justice Saqib Nisar remarked that the decision to club the instant matter with the Panamagate petitions would be taken by the Chief Justice.
Filed through Akram Sheikh Advocate, Abbasi had made Imran, Tareen, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman and Chief Commissioner Islamabad as respondents in the petition. He had submitted that Imran and Tarin had violated the 1976 Act and Income Tax Ordinance 1979 and 2001 by not declaring his offshore company M/S Niazi Services Limited (NSL) in his Statement of Assets and Liabilities filed before the ECP in 2013. He had pleaded the court to declare Imran and Tareen disqualified for being member of the Parliament for concealing assets and evasion of taxes.
Talking to media outside the Supreme Court, Hanif Abbasi said that he would tender unconditional apology to the nation if he failed to prove and expose Imran Khan’s corruption. He added that today PTI counsel sought more time, which is a proof that Imran is trying to avoid accountability.
