Govt allows FIA to arrest Shaukat Tarin

Govt allows FIA to arrest Shaukat Tarin

Islamabad (Web Desk): The coalition government has allowed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to arrest former finance minister Shaukat Tarin in a case related to his alleged audio leak, says Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah.

Earlier, the FIA sought the interior ministry’s approval to begin legal proceedings and eventually arrest Tarin for allegedly sabotaging negotiations between Pakistan and the IMF —International Monetary Fund.

The FIA has completed its probe against the former finance minister and his leaked audios involving the former Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa finance ministers.

Last week, two audio clips surfaced via TV channels and social media; in one, the man said to be Tarin can be heard guiding Punjab Finance Minister Mohsin Leghari to tell the federal government and the IMF that he would not be able to commit to a provincial budget surplus in light of the recent floods that have wreaked havoc in Pakistan.

“We only wanted the provincial finance minister to write to the federal government so “pressure falls on these… they’re jailing us, filing terrorism charges against us and they’re going away completely scot-free. We can’t allow this to happen,” the voice purportedly that of Tarin’s is heard telling Leghari.