Pakistan: Election Commission says PTI received prohibited funds, issues show-cause notice

Islamabad: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), in its verdict on the "prohibited funding" case, on Tuesday, said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf had received the prohibited funds and issued a show-cause notice to PTI.
The Commission found that the donations were taken from 34 countries in fundraising. These included America, Australia, and the UAE, Geo News reported. The ECP also said that the PTI hasd taken funds from an American businessman.
In its verdict, the ECP observed the 'unknown accounts' and said that hiding accounts are a "violation of the Constitution".
Moreover, it found that PTI Chairman Imran Khan submitted a false Nomination Form I.
The ECP decided to issue a show-cause notice to the PTI to explain why the commission should not seize the funds it received.
According to the publication, the ECP, Monday, released the cause list for the case. The cause list showed that the verdict would be announced by a three-member bench led by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja, who arrived early in the morning at the office.
The decision to announce the verdict comes after a Financial Times expose revealed that the PTI received funding from Wootton Cricket Club belonging to Abraaj founder Arif Naqvi. The funds were generated through a charity match and an Arab personality also pitched in a large sum of money.
The funds were generated through a charity match and an Arab personality also pitched in a large sum of money, reported Geo News.
The FT report provided ammunition to the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), and they demanded an early announcement of the verdict.
Earlier, ECP officials, on the condition of anonymity, told Daily Jang that the election commission would announce the foreign funding verdict during the first week of August.
The PTI hid funds worth millions of rupees from the ECP, the report of an ECP scrutiny committee probing the party's funds revealed on January 4, reported Geo News.
The report stated that the PTI provided "false information" regarding the party's funding to the ECP. It said that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP's) bank statement revealed that the party had received Rs 1.64 billion in funding.
According to the report, the party did not disclose funding worth more than Rs 310 million to the ECP.
The scrutiny committee was formed in 2019 to audit foreign funding received by the PTI. (ANI)