Shaukat Tarin, the leader of the PTI and a former finance minister, is allegedly the subject of a leaked audio call in which he asks a former Khyber Pakhtukhwa minister to contact the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in order to exert pressure on the coalition government. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has requested permission from the Ministry of Interior to detain Tarin.
According to reports, the agency has finished its investigation and decided to file a lawsuit against the finance czar for his suspected attempt to sabotage the IMF loan programme. The FIA came to the conclusion that Tarin intended to undermine national security and interest.
The PDM-led administration, which is attempting to resuscitate the loan programme in the face of declining foreign exchange reserves, has forwarded the audio tape to the FIA for inquiry.
Before the IMF’s final meeting to approve a loan for the South Asian nation suffering from a severe economic crisis, Tarin asked the ministers of Punjab and KP at the time to withdraw from their IMF commitments in August of last year.
In the phone call, the former head of Pakistan’s finance appears to be pleading with Mohsin Leghari and Taimur Jhagra to change their minds about the provincial surplus.
The KP finance minister, Taimoor Jhagra, can be heard responding to the Pakistani senator’s question about whether or not he wrote the letter by indicating that he will send it as soon as he draughts it.
The KP finance chief was subsequently instructed by Tarin to emphasise the letter’s flood damage. The first point would be regarding the prompt release of money for infrastructure rebuilding and the rehabilitation of flood victims.
He further compared the action to a form of blackmail, saying that no one ever gave money without gambits.
