IHC orders government to give details of gifts received by Imran Khan

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) directed the government on Wednesday to provide details of gifts received by former prime minister Imran Khan, Aaj News reported.

IHC Justice Gul Hassan Aurangzeb took up the case regarding gifts received by Khan after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif accused the former premier of selling gifts received during foreign visits.

The IHC has adjourned the hearing for two weeks and has ordered the government to publicize details of all gifts given to former prime minister Imran Khan since he took charge in August 2018, saying that the cabinet division is bound to provide this information.

PM accuses Imran of selling Toshakhana gifts

“I can confirm that Imran Khan took gifts worth Rs 140 million from Toshakhana and sold them in Dubai”, said Sharif earlier, adding that valuable state gifts included diamond jewellery, bracelets and watches.

As per the country’s law, any gift received from dignitaries of a foreign state must be put in the state depository or the Toshakhana, a department under the control of Cabinet Division of Pakistan. Its main purpose is to keep gifts which are received by government officials.

Following this, Fawad Chaudhry said, “These gifts were purchased by Imran Khan and (after he became their owner) he can sell his assets. So there is nothing wrong with it."

Responding to him, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb stated that the former prime minister received cufflinks, watches, and rings in foreign gifts.

Marriyum vows to make entire Toshakhana record public

She said the total value of these gifts was Rs140 million, but the government only deposited Rs20 million.

“And all these were then sold for Rs180 million,” she said, adding that no law or morality allowed a sitting prime minister to sell gifts received from foreign heads of states and governments.

Meanwhile, Khan said that the record of whatever gifts he had bought from Toshakhana was available and if anyone had evidence that he had committed corruption, they should bring it forward.

He said a foreign president had sent a gift to his Bani Gala residence that he had then deposited in Toshakhana.

He had bought back the gift at 50 percent of its price, he said, and added: “My gift, my choice. If I wanted to make money, I would have made millions by declaring my house as a camp office but I did not do.”

He said: “I thank Allah, the Almighty that during my three and a half years in power, all they have got against me is this Toshakhana gift scandal, which is already on record.”