Khursheed Shah writes to PM, calls for dialogue over Panama commission TORs

ISLAMABAD: The Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah has written a letter to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, asking the government to hold a dialogue with opposition parties over the terms of reference (ToRs) for the inquiry commission investigating the Panama leaks.

Following the government’s rejection of the opposition-proposed TORs for the proposed judicial commission investigating the Panama leaks, the opposition leader wrote to the premier saying that the opposition is no mood to lock horns with the government.

In the letter, Syed Khursheed Shah apprised the Premier about the stance of opposition parties on the terms of references (ToRs) for the inquiry commission on Panama leaks.

Shah said that the opposition parties compiled the TORs unanimously and then presented its stance, adding that the opposition does not expect the government to accept all the TORs.

Khursheed Shah said that the government should point out the terms that are unacceptable. He said that those should also be held accountable who have had their loans written-off.

The PPP stalwart has also attached the joint communiqué of the meeting of opposition parties, held on May 2. The viewpoint of the opposition should be respected, Shah wrote in the letter.

On Wednesday, a high-level meeting at the Prime Minister House rejected the TORs presented by the opposition.

Leaders at the meeting claimed that the document unveiled by the opposition were not ToRs, but a parallel legal system that could not be accepted for any inquiry under relevant laws.

The government argued that the opposition's TORs were based on ill-intentions aimed at entangling Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The government had also accused the opposition of mistrusting the legal system and the Supreme Court of Pakistan.