We accept Sharif has never been accused by NAB of any wrongdoing in relation to British public money, says newspaper
Islamabad
British newspaper Daily Mail on Thursday retracted its allegations against Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif about embezzling public funds in a news story.
The news story titled ‘Did the family of Pakistani politician who has become the poster boy for British overseas aid STEAL funds meant for earthquake victims’ was published on July 14, 2019.
In the concerning article, the British newspaper said it reported on an investigation by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) into PM Shehbaz and suggested that the money under investigation “included a not insubstantial sum of British public money that had been paid to the Punjab province in DFID grant aid”.
“We accept Mr Sharif has never been accused by the National Accountability Bureau of any wrongdoing in relation to British public money or DFID grant aid,” the newspaper said in a statement published on its website.
“We are pleased to make this clear and apologise to Mr Sharif for this error,” it added.
The British publication has also reportedly removed its reporter David Rose story from all platforms.
PM Shehbaz Sharif had filed a case in the London High Court against British newspaper Daily Mail and its reporter David Rose for publishing a “fabricated and defamatory” report against him in 2020.
“It was a fabricated and defamatory story which published in the Daily Mail. It was a part of propaganda launched by [then prime minister] Imran Niazi against the PML-N in the name of sham accountability,” he said while addressing a news conference in London.
Refuting the allegation made in the Daily Mail report, Shehbaz, then leader of the opposition in the National Assembly said, “If there was a shred of evidence against him of siphoning off millions of ponds the unholy alliance of NAB and PM Imran would not have filed baseless references against him in Pakistan.”
On July 14, 2019 the story appeared in the British newspaper accusing former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif and his family of embezzling millions of pounds out of £500 million aid lent by the Department for International Development (DFID) for 2005 earthquake victims.
As soon as the report surfaced, the PML-N termed it a conspiracy against Shehbaz hatched by the PTI government.
Soon after the report stated making headlines, then PM’s aide on accountability, Shahzad Akbar, had endorsed the Daily Mail story and challenged Shehbaz to file a lawsuit against him in the London court.
He claimed that the government had ‘undeniable evidence’ to establish that the assets accumulated by the PML-N president’s family were made through money laundering and illegal means.
The United Kingdom government-owned agency, DFID, had also refuted claims made by the British daily of aid money being embezzled and laundered by Shehbaz and his family.
The aid agency had also said The Mail “provides little substantial evidence to support its headline” and that Shehbaz “denies any wrongdoing”.
