ISLAMABAD: In light of the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) finding that the party received illegal donations, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has requested that five Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leaders, including former National Assembly deputy speaker Qasim Suri, personally appear in a probe into prohibited funds. The bureau formally began an investigation into the party’s use of illegal donations last Friday. Islamabad, Karachi, Peshawar, Lahore, and Quetta were among the cities in Pakistan where investigations were to be overseen by a five-person monitoring team led by Muhammad Athar Waheed.
According to the statement, the investigation was started as a result of a letter submitted by PTI founding member Akbar S. Babar, who asked for a probe into the party’s receipt of funds through accounts maintained in the names of subordinate personnel. The Commercial Banking Circle of the agency issued a summons, requesting documentation of all cash sent to PTI accounts in Balochistan between 2011 and 2013.
The financial watchdog noted that out of the total Rs5.5 million deposited in the same period, Rs5.3 million was taken out of the PTI accounts in the aforementioned three years. According to the statement, Qasim Khan Suri and three other PTI leaders are named on the bank account where the money was sent.