Former interim prime minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has stated that he is prepared to participate in the inquiry into the excessive import of the main crop that caused a crisis in the nation, while denying any misconduct in the import of wheat.
“If called upon, I will appear before the wheat [inquiry] committee,” the former premier stated in a Sunday interview with a local TV station.
The current prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, established an investigative committee earlier this week to look into the excessive import of wheat.
The inquiry committee, led by Cabinet Division Secretary Kamran Afzal, has been given the assignment of determining who is responsible for importing wheat in excess of what is needed and whether or not to authorize the opening of LCs beyond February.
The private sector was permitted to import 6.91 million metric tons of wheat valued at Rs57.192 billion in March.
During his tenure, Kakar, who is now a senator, stated in an interview today that no new legislation encouraging the import of wheat was adopted, and his government only “encouraged the private” sector to import the staple commodity.
According to the former caretaker premier, wheat imports by the private sector were permitted by Statutory Regulatory Orders (SRO) issued while the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government was in power.
According to Kakar, in an effort to save government money, his administration exclusively supported the private sector’s import of wheat under the same SRO.
