FIA summons Shaukat Tarin in person for probe into IMF audio leaks

Monitoring Desk
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Tuesday issued a notice to former finance minister Shaukat Tarin and instructed him to appear before the watchdog in person for an investigation into the audio clips attributed to him regarding the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.
Last month, two audio clips surfaced via TV channels and social media in which a man said to be Tarin can be heard guiding Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab’s finance ministers to tell the federal government and the IMF that they would not be able to commit to a provincial budget surplus in light of the recent floods that have wrought havoc in Pakistan. Previously, KP Finance Minister Taimur Khan Jhagra had written a letter to the Ministry of Finance conveying his administration’s inability to provide a provincial surplus this year.
The audios triggered criticism against the PTI as the ruling coalition alleged that they were nothing but a conspiracy to derail the state’s deal with the global lender. Later, Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar said that a forensic audit of the leaks would be conducted.
In a notice issued to Tarin today, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the FIA said that an inquiry has been initiated against him on the basis of an alleged audio call to Jhagra.