PTI challenges ECP decision over audit of its accounts.

Byline: Malik Asad

ISLAMABAD -- The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has approached the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to challenge the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP)'s decision to reject its applications against an audit of the party's foreign funding.

Through a petition filed in the IHC on Thursday, the ruling party has requested the court to restrain the scrutiny committee formed by the Commission from probing the party's foreign funding.

On Oct 10 a three-member bench of the ECP, headed by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) retired Justice Sardar Mohammad Raza, had rejected four applications filed by the PTI against the audit of its accounts by the scrutiny committee and directed the panel to continue its work and submit a report as soon as possible.

Akbar S. Babar, a founding member of the PTI, had filed the case in 2014, alleging that the party had illegally collected about $3 million through two offshore companies, and that the money was sent through illegal channels from the Middle East to certain accounts of 'PTI employees'.

He also alleged that the foreign accounts used to collect the funds were not mentioned in the annual audit reports submitted to the ECP by the PTI.

The party, in one of its petitions, took the plea that since the ECP which comprised the CEC and four members, was incomplete, an order passed by it lacked legal force.

The scrutiny committee was formed last year to investigate the issue of foreign funding of the PTI in a month, but later the time-limit was extended to an indefinite period.

During the hearing on Oct 1, a conversation took place between the CEC and the PTI's counsel over the disclosure that the party was operating numerous undeclared...