Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistan ChaudhrySalik Hussain will give a "proper response" to the legal notice Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz served him over his allegation that massive financial corruption is taking place in the country's biggest province.
Talking to reporters after a National Assembly session on Wednesday, Salik—whose party, the PML-Q, is a coalition partner of the ruling PML-N in both the Centre and Punjab—said he had heard about the Punjab CM's legal notice. "God willing, we will give a proper response to it once we receive it," he said.
Salik rejected the allegation that he recommended appointing an official of his choice as the deputy commissioner of Gujrat, his native district.
Asked whether he had taken up the matter with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Salik avoided a direct response, saying that his party would respond to the legal notice.
Responding to a question about whether the controversy could affect his brother Chaudhry Shafay Hussain, who is a minister in Maryam's cabinet, he said his remarks were personal and that he had not spoken to his brother either before or after the interview.
Asked about the evidence behind his allegations, Salik said CM Maryam Nawaz herself had acknowledged a day earlier that corruption existed in Punjab.
Earlier, Punjab Minister for Information Azma Bukhari asked the minister to respond to the legal notice, urging him to either present proof of corruption or tender an apology.
"You are a federal minister and part of the government. It does not suit you to make baseless allegations without evidence," Bukhari said. She said Salik admitted a day earlier to recommending the appointment of the deputy commissioner of Gujrat but was now backtracking on the statement.
"Enjoy your status, but you cannot continue making allegations. This will not work," she said, adding that the minister's brother had rejected the allegations the previous day.
Reacting to Azma's statement, PML-Q Central Information Secretary Ghulam Mustafa Malik said Salik is a federal minister and a member of the ruling coalition, but being part of the alliance does not mean remaining silent over mistakes or possible irregularities in government affairs.
He said attempts to divert attention from the actual questions by highlighting the appointment of the Gujrat deputy commissioner would not work.
"Political recommendations are one matter, while questions about the use of official aircraft and national resources are another. These questions remain unanswered. If public resources are used for personal purposes, questions will inevitably be raised," he said.
Talking to The Express Tribune, Hussain said the party had been publicly challenged and was now compelled to respond in kind. "We will present evidence of corruption, as the Maryam Nawaz government wants," he said.
He clarified that the party had not levelled any specific charge against Maryam Nawaz, as Salik's statement had been general in nature. However, he said, the Punjab information minister had been quick to jump into the controversy and target Salik, followed by the chief minister herself.
Commenting on the controversy on X, PML-N stalwart and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif struck a rather conciliatory note, stating that he held Salik and his family in high esteem but could not comprehend his allegation regarding corruption in Punjab.
He said the only way to interpret Salik's statement was to see it as a political move to create more space for his party in the Centre and Punjab by targeting CM Maryam's government.
Source link
