Graft watchdog 'verifying charge' of money laundering against Sharif

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau on Wednesday clarified that it had initiated the process of verification of a complaint into the money laundering allegations against former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and others relying on an article published in an Urdu daily some three months ago.

"When will laundered money will be returned?” was the title of an article published in Daily Ausaf on February 1, 2018. And that article was treated as a complaint whose verification is in progress now,” said the NAB spokesperson in a statement issued by the bureau on Wednesday.

The spokesperson said the columnist in his report categorically alleged that Sharif and others laundered money to the tune of $4.9 billion to India, quoting a World Bank’s report on Migration and Remittances in 2016.



“According to the media report former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, former finance minister Ishaq Dar, former State Bank of Pakistan governor Ashraf Wathra, former SBP deputy governor Saeed Ahmed are allegedly involved in money laundering,” the NAB statement reads.

Consequently, the column reads, Pakistan's foreign reserves were dwindled and Indian foreign currency reserves were enhanced.

“NAB has decided to conduct complaint verification on the basis of alleged money laundering to India on the basis of that media report as the complaint verification of money laundering is under the purview of NAB,” the spokesperson said.



The spokesperson said NAB rejects outright the impression of revenge or hurting anyone, as “NAB does not believe in revenge and determined to eliminate corruption without any discrimination”.

A NAB source said soon complaints verification committee would summon the writer of the column and representatives of the State Bank of Pakistan for the production of evidence they have to fortify their claims.

“In case, sufficient evidence was not collected, NAB will close the inquiry,” he said.