Daily Times

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said the recent audio leaks had exposed real face of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan who had admitted buying five votes.

Talking to the media after appearing before a special court here, he questioned whether there could be a bigger crime than purchasing five votes by a sitting prime minister.

At the start of proceedings, Hamza Shehbaz’s counsel submitted that his client had back pain and an application had been submitted for his exemption from personal appearance for one-day, adding that a medical certificate had also been attached with it.

Advocate Amjad Pervaiz advanced his arguments on the application, filed by the premier for his acquittal in the case. He submitted that the agency had removed charges of Rs 9 billion from the challan. He submitted that the amount was transacted through five accounts, but these accounts were not associated with Suleman, Hamza or the Sharif Group. He submitted that the accounts belonged to Mushtaq Cheeni, but the agency had not yet initiated any inquiry against him. He submitted that the kickbacks and bribes mentioned in the FIR were just tales, which had not been made part of the challan. He submitted that the Lahore High Court (LHC) recently quashed an identical case against Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader Moonis Elahi. The court questioned whether the detailed judgment of Moonis Elahi case had been issued.

Amjad Pervaiz submitted that the judgement had been issued and its verified copy would be presented in the court shortly, adding that indictment in the current case was not possible nor could it continue any further. To a court query about accused Maqsood, he submitted that he passed away earlier this year, but he was never interrogated by the agency. To another court query about the status of Maqsood, he submitted that he used to pay tax and was also audited, adding that he was no longer alive, so nothing could be said about him.