FIA gets nod to arrest Tarin for ‘stalling’ IMF talks

Sanaullah says Imran may be rounded up soon as well

KARACHI:

The government has allowed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to arrest former finance minister Shaukat Tarin on charges of sedition for allegedly stalling talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“An inquiry against Shaukat Tarin has been completed and the government has allowed the FIA to arrest him,” Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah on Sunday said while addressing a news conference in Karachi.

Sanaullah added that the agencies were also conducting an investigation against PTI chairman Imran Khan and pretty soon he might be arrested too.

“There is evidence against Imran and after the courts decide, he might be behind bars very soon,” he claimed.

The minister maintained that Imran had been running a campaign to create political and economic instability in the country since being ousted from the post of the prime minister in April last year.

“For this purpose, he [Imran] misled an innocent man like Shaukat Tarin. He [Tarin] fell into his trap and committed an act which could have caused immense damage to the country,” he added.

The investigative agency had sought the initiation of criminal proceedings on sedition and other charges against the former financial czar in connection with the audio clips wherein he allegedly attempted to employ ‘hardball tactics’ to thrust the crucial loan programme into “jeopardy”.

FIA’s cybercrime zone had sought the government’s permission for a special complaint under Section 196 (prosecution for offences against the state) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) for obtaining cognisance of offences under Section 124-A (sedition) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) in an inquiry pertaining to audio leaks pending against Tarin.

The details emerged in a letter written to the interior ministry by FIA Cybercrime Assistant Director Ayaz Khan.

In the letter, the official stated that the audio was shared on social media.

“Mr Shaukat Tarin had been communicating with the Minister for Finance, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Minister of Finance, Punjab to write letters to [the] federal government that surplus amount will not be refunded to [it] while the terms for cooperation are being finalised between the government of Pakistan and IMF,” the letter read.

“The purpose of Mr Shaukat Tarin’s urging to the provincial ministers was to stall negotiations with [the] IMF [and that] is a matter of national interest and security. In order to proceed further, the law requires a complaint from the ‘appropriate government' under Section 196 of CrPC,” it added.

Speaking at the news conference, Sanaullah said the FIA had been given permission to arrest the former finance minister.

The interior minister added that Tarin should be punished for attempting to sabotage the IMF deal “so that so that no one could dare to commit such a crime in the future”.

On the issue of growing terrorism in the country, Sanaullah conceded that negotiations with militant groups had not worked in the past and there were no further chances of holding talks with them.

He added that the security forces were on alert to deal with the fresh wave of terrorism in the country.

Talking about the elections, the minister said the Constitution gave a timeframe for holding them.

“Either the elections take place in April or October, we are ready for them,” he claimed.

He added that under the prevailing challenges the country was facing, the government was of the opinion that trading allegations and setting off another debate would be an unwise move.

“The assemblies should be allowed to complete their tenures,” he insisted.

Sanaullah lashed out at the PTI chief, saying that he had tried to take over Islamabad on May 25 last year but failed to do so.

He added that Imran had again warned the government on November 26 that he would bring a “sea of humans” to the federal capital but when the people refused to follow him, he went on to “forcibly” dissolve two provincial assemblies of the country.

The minister described Imran as a “political terrorist”.

He added that the country would remain safe from terrorists, including political ones.

The minister claimed that Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rashid had nobody to blame for his arrest but himself alone as he had levelled an allegation against the leader of a top political party without any proof.

Sanaullah maintained that if the government wanted to subject its rivals to political victimisation, then several cases against them could have been registered.

He added that the political opponents were themselves responsible for the cases they were facing.

The minister said he had come to Karachi to monitor the security arrangements for the significant projects under way in the city.

He added that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had held a meeting a couple of days ago to review the security of development projects under way in the country, particularly those being executed by China.

It was decided to personally visit the sites of these projects and inspect their security arrangements, he elaborated.

Earlier, the minister held a meeting on the law and order situation in Sindh, with provincial chief secretary, police chief and other high officials in attendance.

The Sindh police chief briefed him on the security situation in the province.

The strategy to tackle the increasing lawlessness in Karachi was also reviewed.

Sanaullah assured the Sindh police of the federal government’s every possible assistance to overcome the problem of the rising street crimes in Karachi.