All Sharif money abroad was illegal: Dr Mubashir Hasan
They couldn't have taken money abroad even during Ayub era, the law existed before us, says Hasan
LAHORE: (Dunya News) – Former Finance Minister of Pakistan Dr Mubashir Hasan on Monday said that all the Sharifs’ money stashed abroad was taken illegally from Pakistan. He said that the money could not have been taken abroad even before the Bhutto government came into power as the law existed during Ayub Khan’s era also, and was only tightened by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, reported Dunya news.
Talking to Dunya News on the program ‘On the Front’, Dr Mubashir Hasan said that not even a rupee could be taken abroad during his era or even before it. “Money could not have been taken abroad without State Bank’s approval and State Bank was bound to ask Finance Ministry whether the approval could be given or not. So all their money abroad was illegal, and against Pakistan’s law. They had stashed it all in their good days. That was the only way they could have set up their mill abroad. Otherwise, how could they set up a mill? They say that when their mills were nationalised, they established a mill [in Dubai] on 900,000 square feet. That is too big a piece of land”, he said.
The host Kamran Shahid asked him if he had ever received a request from Sharif family to take the money abroad. Mubashir Hasan said that he never received any such request. “And they couldn’t have taken the money abroad even during 60s because the law existed even then. We hadn’t made any new laws. We had just tightened the old one”, he said.
Watch Mubashir Hasan s interview on Sharif family s money kept abroad
“How was the money taken abroad in that era then? If a businessman had to take his money abroad, what was the process”, asked Kamran Shahid. Mubashir Hasan told that it was extremely difficult. “Only students were allowed to take the money abroad. Or if some import was approved by the government, the money could be taken abroad for that too. Any money going abroad otherwise was illegal”, he said.
“I don’t just feel it was money-laundering; it was money-laundering”, he said.
Responding to the allegation, Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) lawyer Barrister Zafarullah said that these things would come up only if such a claim is made by the Sharif family in the court that they took the money to Dubai from Pakistan. “But since they haven’t claimed anything of this nature before the court as yet, we can only call these allegations as assumptions”, he said.
When asked if the government under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was deliberately victimising Sharif family, Dr Mubashir hasan said that whatever the government was doing was according to the law. “We had no enmity with them. Why would we victimise them? We were just doing our duty. In fact we should have done more, I believe. Their reputation was that they had thrown labourers into furnaces. Although there was this allegation and we could have taken such matters up but we didn’t because they were mere allegations. It proves we were not victimising anyone”, said the former PPP stalwart.
Hasan said that all the records must be intact and can easily be presented before the court.
