FIA seeks interior ministry's permission to arrest Shaukat Tarin

FOOLS_NIGHTMARE · Feb 11, 2023

Federal Investigation Agency had completed its investigation against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Senator Shaukat Tarin in his audio leak with Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa finance ministers.

Sources said the FIA had sought the approval of interior ministry to begin legal proceedings against Mr Tarin and eventually his detention.

Read More : My audio conversation was tampered: Shaukat Tarin

As per FIA, Shaukat Tarin’s conversation was an effort to derail the deal with the IMF and he wanted to harm the security and national interests of the country.

Earlier, an audio of PTI leader Shaukat Tarin surfaced in which he allegedly asked Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Finance Ministers to backtrack from IMF commitments in order to pressurize federal government.

In the audio clip, former finance minister was allegedly giving directions to provincial finance minister to derail International Monetary Fund deal.

In alleged audio, Shaukat Tarin said that they need to backtrack from Rs750 billion commitments and tell the lender that the commitment Punjab made was pre-floods and now the province "cannot honor it".

The PTI leader told the finance minister to draft a letter and send it to him for vetting so it could be sent to the federal government and later on to the IMF representative in Pakistan.

At Tarin’s request, Leghari asked whether Pakistan would suffer if Punjab withdraws from the deal.

"Well, frankly isn’t the state already suffering because of the way they are treating your chairman [Khan] and everybody else? IMF will definitely ask them: where will you get the money from now?" Tarin responded.

He further said that Centre is sending PTI leadership to jail and filing terrorism case. Tarin said that this could not go on further and the party could not bear being "mistreated" and not respond. "We cannot be blackmailed.