Inquiry into Pandora Papers in final phase

ISLAMABAD: A fact-finding inquiry into the Pandora Papers revelations is in its final phase, ARY News reported on Saturday, citing sources.

The Prime Minister’s Inspection Commission (PMIC) received replies from more than 200 Pakistanis, including public office holders and bureaucrats, who were named in the Pandora Papers.

Names of 700 Pakistani nationals appeared in Pandora Papers but the PMIC has so far received the names of 240 individuals from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalist (ICIJ), the sources revealed.

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Of these 240 individuals being probed by the commission, 40 are public office holders and bureaucrats, the sources said, adding most of them rejected charges of money laundering and tax evasion.

They said if the commission received more names of individuals from the consortium, they will be investigated. The first phase of the fact-finding inquiry is likely to complete by Jan-end.

The commission was given incomplete details by the consortium, due to which the former faced difficulty in verifying names of some individuals, the sources further said. Of the 240, 30 to 35 names could not be verified.

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The PMIC is conducting the probe with the assistance of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered an investigation against Pakistanis named in Pandora Papers.