ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan’s government has made public the record of gifts retained by important public office holders — presidents, prime ministers, federal ministers, politicians, bureaucrats, retired generals, judges and journalists — from foreign dignitaries in the past 21 years.
The 466-page record of Toshakhana (state depository) was uploaded on the website of the government’s cabinet division on Sunday in compliance with a Lahore high court order, which came on a plea filed last year after the disqualification of former PM Imran Khan by the election commission in connection with the Toshakhana reference.
While the government has already submitted the list of gifts from 2002 till 2022, the high court directed the authorities on Monday to furnish the entire record of gifts received since 1947.
Prominent people who retained the Toshakhana gifts by paying a small amount, in a bid to meet the legal formality, included President Dr Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, former prime ministers Imran Khan, Nawaz Sharif, Shaukat Aziz, Yusuf Raza Gilani, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Zafarullah Khan Jamali, ex-president Asif Ali Zardari, late military dictator Pervez Musharraf, Senate chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, finance minister Ishaq Dar, foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, former minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and ex-foreign ministers Khursheed Kasuri and Shah Mehmood Qureshi, among others.
Imran retained wristwatches, cufflinks, pens and rings worth millions of rupees during his term as prime minister. His wife, Bushra Bibi had also kept jewellery.
Asif Ali Zardari retained two BMW cars with an assessed value of Rs57.8 million and Rs28.7 million, and a Toyota Lexus costing Rs 50 million, apart from precious watches and other items, after depositing a total of Rs16.1 million.
Nawaz Sharif was gifted a Mercedes Benz car worth Rs4.25 million on April 20, 2008, which he retained after paying Rs0.636 million, as per the document, which did not mention in what capacity the PML-N chief had received the vehicle.
The gifts that Sharif and his wife Kulsoom Nawaz retained after he became PM for the third time in 2013 included expensive watches and jewellery.
President Alvi’s wife, Samina Alvi, retained a necklace worth Rs1.19m in October 2019 after paying Rs865,000 for it and other items in the jewellery box. The president himself retained a Rolex wristwatch worth Rs2.5m in February 2022 after paying nearly half its value, Rs1.2m.
Kasuri had received several gifts in 2005 and retained these items free of cost.
Raja Pervaiz Ashraf retained a Graff wristwatch worth Rs890,000 in November 2012 after paying a sum of Rs218,000 for it and other items. Sheikh Rashid had retained dozens of gifts after paying a meagre Rs3,420.
The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf said the list released by the government was incomplete and demanded disclosure of gifts retained by generals and judges as well.
The 466-page record of Toshakhana (state depository) was uploaded on the website of the government’s cabinet division on Sunday in compliance with a Lahore high court order, which came on a plea filed last year after the disqualification of former PM Imran Khan by the election commission in connection with the Toshakhana reference.
While the government has already submitted the list of gifts from 2002 till 2022, the high court directed the authorities on Monday to furnish the entire record of gifts received since 1947.
Prominent people who retained the Toshakhana gifts by paying a small amount, in a bid to meet the legal formality, included President Dr Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, former prime ministers Imran Khan, Nawaz Sharif, Shaukat Aziz, Yusuf Raza Gilani, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Zafarullah Khan Jamali, ex-president Asif Ali Zardari, late military dictator Pervez Musharraf, Senate chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, finance minister Ishaq Dar, foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, former minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and ex-foreign ministers Khursheed Kasuri and Shah Mehmood Qureshi, among others.
Imran retained wristwatches, cufflinks, pens and rings worth millions of rupees during his term as prime minister. His wife, Bushra Bibi had also kept jewellery.
Asif Ali Zardari retained two BMW cars with an assessed value of Rs57.8 million and Rs28.7 million, and a Toyota Lexus costing Rs 50 million, apart from precious watches and other items, after depositing a total of Rs16.1 million.
Nawaz Sharif was gifted a Mercedes Benz car worth Rs4.25 million on April 20, 2008, which he retained after paying Rs0.636 million, as per the document, which did not mention in what capacity the PML-N chief had received the vehicle.
The gifts that Sharif and his wife Kulsoom Nawaz retained after he became PM for the third time in 2013 included expensive watches and jewellery.
President Alvi’s wife, Samina Alvi, retained a necklace worth Rs1.19m in October 2019 after paying Rs865,000 for it and other items in the jewellery box. The president himself retained a Rolex wristwatch worth Rs2.5m in February 2022 after paying nearly half its value, Rs1.2m.
Kasuri had received several gifts in 2005 and retained these items free of cost.
Raja Pervaiz Ashraf retained a Graff wristwatch worth Rs890,000 in November 2012 after paying a sum of Rs218,000 for it and other items. Sheikh Rashid had retained dozens of gifts after paying a meagre Rs3,420.
The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf said the list released by the government was incomplete and demanded disclosure of gifts retained by generals and judges as well.