ISLAMABAD: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) booked PTI Chairman Imran Khan in prohibited funding case as anti-corruption watchdog ramps up investigation into matter.

First information report (FIR) registered against former prime minister has been lodged at FIA's banking circle police station. In FIR, federal agency alleged Abraaj Group transferred $ 2100,000 to PTI account in branch of a bank situated at Jinnah Avenue in Islamabad.

Abraaj Group was a private equity firm, operating on six continents, which is currently in liquidation due to accusations of fraud. In addition, party received more financing from two bank accounts of Wotan Cricket Club, read FIR. FIA said manager of private bank helped agency in its probe into questionable transactions. Besides Khan, Sardar Azhar Tariq, Tariq Shafi, and Younis Aamir Kiani have also been nominated in FIR. FIA said affidavit submitted to ECP by businessman Arif Naqvi was also false. FIR also mentioned manager of same bank branch had also been nominated in case. "Bank account's title is 'Naya Pakistan' and bank manager illegally allowed operation of account." It added that there were 12 currency transaction reports and suspicious transaction reports that had to be reported by bank officials to concerned authorities, but they failed to do so. FIR alleged branch's operations manager had also failed to report these illegal transactions to concerned authorities.

FIR came just a day after Islamabad High Court issued a notice to FIA in prohibited funding case after PTI asked court to stop agency from probing case. FIA has time and again summoned PTI leaders for questioning, however, not all of them have shown up. On October 10, a district court in Lahore sent PTI leader Hamid Zaman on a 14-day judicial remand in prohibited funding case.

FIA had registered a case against Zaman, a trustee of Insaf Trust, over prohibited party funding.  On August 22, 2022, ECP in a unanimous verdict announced that PTI received prohibited funding. Case was earlier referred to as "foreign funding" case, but later election commission accepted PTI's plea to refer to it as "prohibited funding" case. Commission found that donations were taken from America, Australia, Canada and UAE. PTI received funds from 34 individuals and 351 businesses including companies, ECP verdict stated. Thirteen unknown accounts also came to light, said commission in verdict, adding that hiding accounts are a "violation" of Article 17 of Constitution. Funds were also in violation of Article 6 of Political Parties Act.

Published in The Daily National Courier, October, 12 2022

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