Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) estranged leader Jahangir Khan Tareen has said that he has the support of 40 lawmakers belonging to the National and Punjab assemblies.
Speaking to media outside a Lahore court, Tareen said that these lawmakers requested Imran Khan for a meeting, saying that they were his MNAs and MPAs. According to Tareen, the government is in power because of the votes of these lawmakers so they deserve a meeting with the premier at least.
Tareen also said that he or his group will not meeting anyone from the ruling party except the prime minister. “Some friends assured me that the prime minister will meet me and listen to my demands soon,” Tareen said, adding that he was a victim of a witch-hunt.
This is the first time that Tareen has officially announced the support of 40 lawmakers. These lawmakers had earlier joined Tareen on his court hearings thrice, visited his residence for dinner, but Tareen never spoke a word about the number of these lawmakers.
But finally, Tareen has shown his cards.
Before this formal announcement, there were reports that the lawmakers who were in Tareen’s camp had offered to submit their resignations in solidarity with the PTI leader.
Last Friday, Tareen hosted a dinner for his allied lawmakers which was attended by eight MNAs, including two ministers, and 10 MPAs. These lawmakers also accompanied him to the court the next day in a show of power.
Tareen has the support of at least 40 PTI lawmakers, who have warned the PM that they will be forced to announce their future strategy if they were to be pushed against the wall. Last week, Raja Riaz, a close aide of Tareen, had said: “We will have no option left if PM Imran refuses to listen to us.”
Tareen, once a right-hand of Prime Minister Imran Khan, has been facing cases in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) over alleged money laundering and involvement in a mega sugar scam. The FIA has
Earlier, Tareen had shot down rumours that he would join the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). He had said: “We are the party and we will remain in it. If we don’t stay then where will we go?”
Tareen’s Woes
Tareen, once a close confidant of Prime Minister Imran Khan, is in hot water for his alleged involvement in the manipulation of the sugar industry. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has registered multiple cases against him and his son.
The probe against Tareen started after the report of the sugar inquiry commission last year. The commission had implicated Tareen’s JDW Sugar Mills among other sugar mills for circumventing laws to make profits.
The report had revealed how a sugar cartel comprising 88 mills, including JDW Sugar Mills owned by Tareen, had cheated sugarcane growers and consumers at every step to mint money, resulting in the hike in the price of sugar.
In June 2020, PM Imran Khan said his government has started an action on basis of a sugar inquiry report and that he will “unmask all mafias”.
In August, FIA initiated an investigation into money laundering charges against Tareen’s JWD Group. In November 2020, FIA registered a case against Tareen and son Ali Tareen over money laundering.
As per the FIA, Tareen allegedly transferred Rs3.14 billion to a private company, Farooqi Pulp Private Limited, owned by his son and close relatives. “The transfers, especially after 2011-2012, were patently fraudulent investments which ultimately translated into personal gains for the family member of the JDW CEO,” the FIR alleged.
It further alleged that Ali Tareen purchased cash from the open market in Lahore in a structured manner to remit it to the UK. “Subsequently, in 2016, Ali Khan Tareen remitted approximately US$7.4 million to the United Kingdom for purchasing properties (to be investigated in detail during the course of the investigation) which makes them liable for Anti-Money Laundering investigation,” the FIR quoted in media said.
According to the FIA, Tareen’s son-in-law Waleed Akbar Faruki and Shahid Akbar Faruki also benefitted from the scheme along with Tareen and his son Ali Tareen.
In the second case, Tareen has been accused of corporate fraud of Rs3.6 billion through the purchase of JK Farming Systems Ltd and booking losses through it.
Tareen has also been accused of making “voluminous withdrawals amounting to at least Rs2.2 billion”. The FIA said that these withdrawals were made “fraudulently and dishonestly through a trusted cash rider”.
According to a report, Amir Waris, a cashier at JDW’s Corporate Head Office, deposited large amounts into the personal and business accounts of Tareen and his family members.
The sections under which the case has been lodged against the father-son duo include 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating), and 109 (abetment) among others.
Tareen denies all these accusations.
