Jahangir Tareen not as close to PTI now: Sheikh Rashid

• Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid says PTI and Jahangir Tareen are now distant from one another.
• He spoke about Jahangir Tareen on Geo News programme Aapas ki Baat.
• Interior minister gives statement cases of fraud and money laundering registered against Jahangir and son Ali Tareen.

ISLAMABAD: Federal Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid says Jahangir Tareen is now "far away" from the PTI.

The interior minister was talking about the PTI leader on Geo News programme Aapas ki Baat. He said there is a major distance now between PTI, the government and Jahangir.

Asked about the inclusion of the names of Jahangir and his son Ali Tareen on the Exit Control List, Rashid said that he had not yet received any information on the matter.

Read more: Alleged fraud, money laundering cases registered against Jahangir Tareen, son

The interior minister's statements come a day after cases were registered against Jahangir and his son Ali on charges of fraud and money laundering.

A Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Lahore investigation team registered a case of alleged fraud of Rs3.14 billion on March 22 against them.

The FIR states that Jahangir allegedly transferred illegal shares worth billions of rupees to Farooqi Pulp Mills Limited (FPML), which is owned by his son and close relatives.

It includes sections 406, 420 and 109 of the Pakistan Penal Code with Section 3/4 of Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010. Rana M Shawaz will be the investigation officer.

FIA's allegations are baseless: Jahangir Tareen

Talking to Geo News, Jahangir had said that the allegations by FIA are "baseless". He said a private audit firm has already validated the accounts of his companies.

Read more: CCP raids head office of Jehangir Tareen’s JDW Sugar Mills

The PTI leader took the position that all the shares were transferred in accordance with the law and accounts law.

Sugar crisis of 2020 and its investigation report:

Last year, PM Imran Khan had tasked the FIA to investigate the sugar crisis throughout the country and find out who benefited from it.

A report by the FIA released last year had claimed that top PTI members were among those who gained from the recent sugar crisis in the country.

Sugar scam: Lahore High Court declares FIA's JIT 'null and void'

Among the people named in the FIA report were Jahangir Tareen and a brother of the then Minister for National Food Security Khusro Bakhtiar.

Tareen was said by the report to have benefited the most from the sugar crisis followed by Bakhtiar's brother.

The report had also claimed that companies belonging to Moonis Elahi — an ally of the party — profited from the sugar crisis. Elahi is Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi's son and a key member of the PML-Q.