Pak opposition calls Imran Khan 'thief' after ECP committee report on foreign funding

Islamabad [Pakistan], January 5 (ANI): Pakistan opposition parties on Tuesday slammed the Prime Minister after a report of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) scrutiny committee probing Imran Khan's party funds revealed that it has hidden funds worth millions of rupees and called him a "thief".
Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) spokesperson Hafiz Hamdullah, in a statement, said the scrutiny committee's report has "revealed the theft of Imran Khan and PTI", reported Geo News.
"The scrutiny committee has exposed the true face of the PTI before the nation [...] Imran Khan and PTI, who accused others of theft, turned out to be thieves themselves," he said.
The spokesperson said the report has "proven" that PM Imran Khan is "not sadiq and ameen" anymore, as he demanded the premier to disclose the purpose for which the hidden bank accounts were used.
Lashing out at Khan, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz said Imran Khan had not only "stolen and hidden money, but also plundered the people", reported Geo News.
Maryam said the "constant leaks, revelations, and evidence, are more than enough to bring down the PTI".
"No other party in history has been behind such serious fraud and scandals," she said.
"Has there been such a corrupt, liar, and conspiratorial ruler like Imran Khan in the history of Pakistan?" she asked.
The ECP report stated that the PTI provided "false information" regarding the party's funding. It said that the State Bank of Pakistan's (SBP) statement revealed that the party had received Rs 1.64 billion in funding, Geo News reported.
According to the report, the party did not disclose funding worth more than Rs 310 million to the ECP.
Pakistan People's Party (PPP)'s Central Information Secretary Shazia Marri, addressing a press conference in Lahore, asked the PTI and PM Imran Khan to provide complete bank account and funding details to the ECP.
"You have given details about 12 accounts, where are the details of the rest of the accounts [...] PPP has submitted complete details of its accounts," she said, Geo News reported.
Later, in a tweet, Marri said, "Imran Khan talashi do (give yourself up for examination)."
PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal said that the scrutiny committee's report had "washed away Imran Khan's make up of honesty".
"Imran Khan acts as the champion of transparency in the country, but in the foreign funding case, he is making lame excuses to stop the hearing; PTI is resorting to mudslinging to cover its own theft," he said, reported Geo News.
The scrutiny committee was formed in 2019 to audit foreign funding received by the PTI. The case began in 2014 when the party's founding member, Akbar S Babar, filed it.
Babar alleged that the PTI received funding from illegal sources and that the party was also involved in money laundering, according to Dawn. (ANI)