https://sputnikglobe.com/20220729/imran-khan-in-the-eye-of-storm-amid-reports-his-party-got-shady-funds-from-uae-businessman-1097928332.html
Imran Khan in the Eye of Storm Amid Reports His Party Got Shady Funds From UAE Businessman
Imran Khan in the Eye of Storm Amid Reports His Party Got Shady Funds From UAE Businessman
Sputnik International
Despite having been ousted from the country's top job in April, cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan continues to hold sway over his countrymen with his... 29.07.2022, Sputnik International
2022-07-29T14:06+0000
2022-07-29T14:06+0000
2024-01-14T17:12+0000
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Imran Khan came to power in Pakistan after carefully crafting an image of being an anti-corruption crusader.But the former Pakistan Prime Minister is now under intense scrutiny after a report in The Financial Times (FT) suggested that his party, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), got millions of dollars in foreign funding from Arif Naqvi, a Pakistani businessman based in the UAE. Naqvi is the founder of the Abraaj Group headquartered in Dubai.According to the publication, Khan's PTI received approximately $2.45Mln through a cricket fundraiser event, held between 2010 and 2012, and was organized by Abraaj Group at Wootton, a village in the county of Oxfordshire.According to the FT report, Abraaj Group's company Wootton Cricket Ltd, which is based in the tax haven of the Cayman Islands, was used to provide funds to PTI after it charged individuals between $2,500 and $3,000 to attend the event held at Wootton.The FT also claims that an Abu Dhabi minister also raised funds for Khan's party during the said period. The Abu Dhabi minister in question is supposedly Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak al-Nahyan.Mubarak al-Nahyan currently heads the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Social Development in the UAE and is a member of the country's royal family.The report goes on to say that Naqvi then exchanged emails with a colleague about transferring $1.2Mln more to the PTI."Six days after the $2Mln arrived in the Wootton Cricket bank account, Naqvi transferred $1.2Mln from it to Pakistan in two installments. Rafique Lakhani, the senior Abraaj executive responsible for managing cashflow, wrote in an email to Naqvi that the transfers were intended for the PTI," the FT report added.According to the rules of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), any kind of overseas funding is barred. The FT's investigation reveals that Wootton Cricket Ltd is a firm registered in the UAE.The former Pakistan premier, however, denied any wrongdoing despite acknowledging that he took part in a "fundraising event which was attended by many PTI supporters" at the event hosted by Naqvi at Wootton Place.The PTI chief said he wasn't aware of his party receiving any money from the UAE."It is not appropriate to prejudge PTI," the ex-Pakistan PM added.Pakistan's Election Commission has been investigating the alleged irregularities in PTI accounts for the past seven years but the organization had yet to make a public statement about its findings.The FT report, meanwhile, could hurt Khan's reelection bid in 2023 after the former Pakistan cricket captain's four-year reign as the country's PM came to an end earlier this year when he lost a trust vote in the National Assembly.
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Imran Khan in the Eye of Storm Amid Reports His Party Got Shady Funds From UAE Businessman
14:06 GMT 29.07.2022 (Updated: 17:12 GMT 14.01.2024) Despite having been ousted from the country's top job in April, cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan continues to hold sway over his countrymen with his rallies well-attended across Pakistan. Earlier this month, his Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party won crucial by-polls in the Punjab Province where elections were held for 20 assembly seats.
Imran Khan came to power in Pakistan after carefully crafting an image of being an anti-corruption crusader.
But the former Pakistan Prime Minister is now under intense scrutiny after a report in The Financial Times (FT) suggested that his party, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), got millions of dollars in foreign funding from Arif Naqvi, a Pakistani businessman based in the UAE.
Naqvi is the founder of the Abraaj Group headquartered in Dubai.
According to the publication, Khan's PTI received approximately $2.45Mln through a cricket fundraiser event, held between 2010 and 2012, and was organized by Abraaj Group at Wootton, a village in the county of Oxfordshire.
According to the FT report, Abraaj Group's company Wootton Cricket Ltd, which is based in the tax haven of the Cayman Islands, was used to provide funds to
PTI after it charged individuals between $2,500 and $3,000 to attend the event held at Wootton.
The FT also claims that an Abu Dhabi minister also raised funds for Khan's
party during the said period. The Abu Dhabi minister in question is supposedly Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak al-Nahyan.
Mubarak al-Nahyan currently heads the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Social Development in the UAE and is a member of the country's royal family.
"Wootton Cricket’s bank statement shows it received $1.3Mln on 14 March 2013 from Abraaj Investment Management Ltd, the fund management unit of Naqvi’s private equity firm, boosting the account’s previous balance of $5,431. Later the same day, $1.3Mln was transferred from the account directly to a PTI bank account in Pakistan," the report in the FT revealed.
The report goes on to say that Naqvi then exchanged emails with a colleague about transferring $1.2Mln more to the PTI.
"Six days after the $2Mln arrived in the Wootton Cricket bank account, Naqvi transferred $1.2Mln from it to Pakistan in two installments. Rafique Lakhani, the senior Abraaj executive responsible for managing cashflow, wrote in an email to Naqvi that the transfers were intended for the PTI," the FT report added.
According to the rules of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), any kind of overseas funding is barred. The FT's investigation reveals that Wootton Cricket Ltd is a firm registered in the UAE.
The former Pakistan premier, however, denied any wrongdoing despite acknowledging that he took part in a "fundraising event which was attended by many PTI supporters" at the event hosted by Naqvi at Wootton Place.
The PTI chief said he wasn't aware of his party receiving any money from the UAE.
"Arif Naqvi has given a statement which was filed before the Election Commission also, not denied by anyone, that the money came from donations during a cricket match and the money as collected by him was sent through his company Wootton Cricket,” Imran Khan told the British media outlet.
"It is not appropriate to prejudge PTI," the ex-Pakistan PM added.
Pakistan's Election Commission has been investigating the alleged irregularities in PTI accounts for the past seven years but the organization had yet to make a public statement about its findings.
The FT report, meanwhile, could hurt Khan's reelection bid in 2023 after the former Pakistan cricket captain's four-year reign as the country's PM came to an end earlier this year when he lost a trust vote in the National Assembly.
