Daily Times

A legislative body of the Upper House of parliament on Tuesday expressed annoyance over the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) for what it described as its “discrimination attitude towards Pakistan and giving India exemption despite clear evidence of terror financing and money laundering against it”.

The chairman of the committee, Senator Rehman Malik, said that he had written a letter to the FATF President Marshall Billingslea on February 14, asking it to take action against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “protecting international fugitives involved in biggest ever credit fraud and money laundering”.

He said that he had sent the letter with all evidence proving that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was involved in money laundering and terror financing by supporting India’s extremist organistaion, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

In his response on February 18, Malik said, the FATF president replied that the task force has no investigative or prosecutorial functions, and is not in a position to give a legal opinion on the situation.

He said if the FATF could not open a case against PM Narendra Modi for terror financing and money laundering, how could it place Pakistan on the ‘grey list’?

Rehman said that he had written another letter to the FATF president on Tuesday, asking as to what it would take for the financial watchdog to take action against India.

“I thankfully acknowledge receipt of your response to my letter on February 14. In your response, you have intimated that holding any formal investigation on a complaint does not fall within the mandate of the FATF. It was intimated that FATF was a policymaking body and was hence unable to undertake investigation against India. However, I would like to draw your kind attention towards the mandate of the FATF, a copy of which is being attached herewith for ready reference. It is a matter of record of the FATF that a formal inquiry against Pakistan was initiated based on a complaint from United States alleging Pakistan’s involvement in terror funding and money laundering and consequently, the FATF placed Pakistan on the grey list,” the letter reads.

On the issue of missing persons, the committee was told that the total number of missing persons in the country stood at 3,551 by December 2018.

Malik lauded the chairman, members and secretary of Commission on Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances for their efforts despite limited resources.

The committee also took a notice of the ongoing target killings in Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It was told that more than twenty people had been killed in DI Khan over the period of two months. The committee directed KP Police to bring an end to the ongoing target killings and take action against terrorists and organizations behind the killing of innocent people there.

The chairman directed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa home secretary and provincial police chief to submit reports to the committee in its next meeting and also appear in person to brief the body on the target killings in DI Khan. He said that in the next meeting of the committee religious scholars from different schools of thought, political representatives, and victim families of the martyrs and notables of the area shall also be invited to the committee to discuss the issue in detail and find its permanent solution.

The committee’s meeting, which was held at the Parliament Hosue, was attended by senators Muhammad Javed Abbasi, Kalsoom Parveen, Shibli Faraz, Haji Momin Khan Afridi, Muhammad Ateeq Shaikh and senior officials.

Published in Daily Times, March 13^th 2019.