ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary committee formed to look into the Panama Papers data leak held its first meeting on Wednesday.
The committee, comprising representatives from government and opposition parties, was tasked to formulate Terms of References (TORs) for a proposed Supreme Court-led judicial commission to launch probe into the revelations.
It was decided during the meeting that the committee would not be headed by anyone and that all representatives would act equally.The government and opposition representatives exchanged with each other TORs for the proposed judicial commission.
The committee is due to resume its deliberations on Thursday. The parliamentary committee comprises six members each from the government and the opposition, including stalwarts of the PPP, PTI, and the ruling PML-N.
Leaked confidential documents spanning over nearly 40 years that spell out the extensive use of tax havens by politicians, world leaders, and celebrities to launder money and evade taxes through one of the most secretive companies the Panamaian law firm Mossack Fonseca, had taken the world by storm.
Many Pakistanis have also been named in their revelations.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been under pressure since documents released showed his children owned several off-shore companies and used them to buy properties in London.
He denies wrongdoing, as do his children.
The leak of documents has captured global attention, uncovering among other things the use of off-shore businesses by wealthy individuals and corporations worldwide.
While such off-shore companies are often not illegal per se, their use spurs suspicions of illegal activity, such as money-laundering, corruption, and tax evasion.