PM Shehbaz's cabinet decides to declassify Toshakhana record
Last updated on: 09 March,2023 01:27 pm
Khawaja Asif says record to be posted on cabinet division's website
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – The federal cabinet has decided to make the details and records of Toshakhana, a state repository that stores gifts received by public officeholders from other governments and foreign dignitaries, public, said Defence Minister Khawaja Asif.
Mr Asif took to Twitter, stating: “The cabinet has allowed declassification of Toshakhan record. It would soon be posted on website of the cabinet division”.
The Toshakhana department, which was established in 1978, and all the public officeholders, including parliamentarians and bureaucrats, are bound to report the gifts to the Cabinet Division. The department came under the spotlight when proceedings were initiated against former prime minister Imran Khan for “not sharing details” of Toshakhana gifts retained by him.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has also disqualified the PTI chief as member of the National Assembly in the Toshakhana case for not disclosing the gifts last year. A districts and sessions court in the federal capital is also hearing a criminal case against him for concealing details of the gifts he retained while serving as the prime minister.
Read More: LHC to hold off order to make Toshakhana gifts public until complete satisfaction
Earlier this year, the federal government had told the Lahore High Court (LHC) that public disclosure of Toshakhana details could cause unnecessary media hype and could be potentially damaging for Pakistan’s foreign relations. However, the LHC remarked that it would hold off an order to make details of the Toshakhana gifts public until it would be satisfied that these gifts were kept secret.
NAB Team in Dubai to Probe Toshakhan case
A day earlier, a team of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) reached Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), for an investigation into the Toshakhana case against the PTI chief.
The four-member team headed by NAB Director Rizwan Ahmed would collect information about sale of the precious watch which was received by Mr Khan as state gift from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.
Sources said the team visited Umar Farooq, who had claimed to buy the watch, Pakistani embassy in UAE and some shops to conduct investigation.
NAB has obtained the records of gifts from the cabinet division and government treasury for investigation. The NAB Rawalpindi DG is supervising the investigation of the Toshakhana case.
In November last, the NAB had taken notice of the alleged non-disclosure of the actual value of gifts received by the former prime minister, his wife, and other cabinet members.