Qatari Prince Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani has invited members of joint investigation team (JIT) probing the Panama Papers case to his palace in Doha to respond questions related to the matter. Sources said that Qatari prince has sent his reply in response to the third letter of the JIT. The JIT wrote a letter to the Qatari prince on July 4 and clearly informed him that it had to investigate, not verify, the letter, they added. They further said that the prince in his reply also asked for the names of JIT members and date of visit.
Source said the JIT has earlier sent two letters to the Qatari prince in May this year, asking him to appear before the JIT in person to record his statement regarding the letter that he had written to the Sharifs with a view to establishing in the Supreme Court money trail of the London apartments. It is pertinent to mention here that the prince had written in the letter that four flats - 16, 16A, 17 and 17A, Avenfield House, Park Lane, London - were registered under the ownership of two offshore companies, while their bearer share certificates were kept in Qatar. "These were purchased from the proceeds of the real estate business," the letter had claimed.
Sources said the six-member JIT headed by Additional Director General Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Wajid Zia held its meeting on Friday to give final touches to its report to be submitted to the Supreme Court on July 10.
The JIT has already recorded the statements of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his younger brother and Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, his sons Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz, his daughter Maryam Nawaz, son-in-law Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar, his cousin Tariq Shafi, a friend of Sharif family Javed Kiyani, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Former Interior Minister Rehman Malik, Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Qamar Zaman Chaudhry, President National Bank of Pakistan Saeed Ahmed and a member of International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) Umer Cheema.