Details of Nawaz-Jindal 'secret' meeting must be made public: Khurshid Shah

Shah said, how can a premier stop corruption when he himself is involved in corruption?

Opposition leader, Khurshid Shah, urged Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, on Friday, to make public the details of his recent 'secret' meeting with Indian business tycoon Sajjan Jindal, Express News reported.

"The nation must be apprised of details of the meeting," Shah said and added that "holding meetings behind closed door is an old habit of the premier."

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is under criticism for his 'secret' meeting with Jindal who was accompanied by a delegation from India. Jindal, believed to be a close friend of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, met PM Nawaz at his private residence in Murree, on Wednesday.

Although nothing has officially been shared about the context of this meeting, it is believed it was part of back-channel diplomacy to arrange a meeting between the Pakistani and Indian prime ministers on the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit to be held in June in Astana, Kazakhstan. Pakistan and India are set to become full members of the SCO in the upcoming conference.



Shah also said Nawaz should stop supporting government officials involved in corruption. In an apparent reference to the removal of Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) Director General Dr Akhtar Nawaz Ganjera, Shah said, "The PM, himself, is involved in corruption exposed by Panama Papers leaks, how can he stop corruption?"

The opposition leader said the premier did not appear to be Sadiq (truthful) in the Panamagate case or other cases relating to corruption.

Earlier today, federal minister for inter-provincial coordination Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada resigned  in protest against Ganjera's removal from his post.