Differences have surfaced within the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) internal accountability committee regarding an inquiry into corruption allegations leveled against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati, as reported by The News.
According to sources, a disagreement has emerged between committee members Brigadier (retd) Musaddiq Abbasi and senior lawyer Qazi Anwar concerning the findings of the investigation.
The division reportedly deepened after Anwar shared the committee’s investigation report with senior lawyer Salman Akram Raja. The remaining members viewed this action as a breach of the committee’s code of conduct.
“The report was intended solely for submission to the PTI founder,” stated a committee member, requesting anonymity. “Qazi Anwar sent the report to an outsider without consulting the other members.”
This action has drawn the displeasure of the other two members of the committee, who believe the move violated the standard operating procedures (SOPs) governing the committee’s operations.
Speaking to Geo News, Anwar confirmed that he had indeed sent the report to Raja. “He requested the report, so I shared it with him,” Anwar said, while acknowledging that under the committee’s SOPs, the report should not have been shared with anyone other than the PTI founder.
Commenting on the investigation itself, Anwar stated that he did not find Swati guilty of corruption, a conclusion with which Abbasi disagreed.
The third member of the committee, Shah Farman, along with Abbasi, declined to offer any public comment on the matter. This internal rift has raised questions regarding the transparency and unity of the committee tasked with ensuring accountability within the ranks of PTI.
