Captain Muhammad Safdar (Retd), the son-in-law of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, on Friday filed Terms of Reference (ToRs) in Supreme Court for the proposed judicial commission that would hold a probe into the Panama leaks. While resuming the Panama Leaks case in response to the pleas of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and three other petitioners against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and family members for allegedly holding offshore companies, a five-member larger bench led by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali had asked all the parties to the case to submit ToRs for the proposed judicial commission.
Filing the proposed ToRs, Safdar urged the proposed judicial commission to examine information pertaining to the involvement of Pakistani citizens, persons of Pakistan-origin and legal entities in offshore companies in Panama or any other country. He said the proposed judicial commission should determine in each case whether any law for the time being in force has been infringed, and if so, also determine responsibility for such infringement.
"Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, the Commission shall determine whether the provisions of laws relating to income tax, wealth tax, foreign exchange, companies and elections in force at the relevant time have been infringed, with due regard infer-alia to the following matters, as may be applicable to each case:- (a) details of properties held by the off-shore companies; (b) sources of income utilised to purchase the properties in (a) above, (c) Income tax if any payable/paid on the income in (b) above; and (d) details of sellers of the properties in (a) above," Safdar said.
He also submitted, "to examine information relating to written-off bank loans, including:- (i) Report of the Commission on Written-off Loans set up by the Supreme Court of Pakistan; and (ii) other cases of bank loans written-off after the period covered by the said Commission by former or present holders of elective public office, and determine whether in any case loans were written-off through political influence or other than commercial considerations".
He further said the proposed judicial commission may examine the information relating to transfer from Pakistan of funds which have originated from corruption, commissions and kickbacks and identify the persons responsible besides making such recommendations as it may deem appropriate in all cases.