Pak FM harasses journalist: Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar found himself in fresh controversy after he allegedly lost his temper and proceeded to slap and harass a journalist when the latter asked him a question over a stalled International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.
The altercation happened when Dar was approached by journalist Shahid Qureshi after leaving the Pakistan parliament premises. Qureshi had asked him about the progress of the stalled IMF deal and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent talks with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, PTI reported citing media reports.
Slapped, attempted to seize phone: Journalist
A video went viral on social media where the journalist was seen asking Dar about the deal. When Dar refused to respond, the journalist questioned the government on its failure to secure a USD 1.1 billion deal from the IMF. Dar then aggressively responded that the deal was not completed “because people like you are in the system.”
As Qureshi defended himself, Dar became angrier and told the journalist to ‘fear God’. He also allegedly tried to seize Qureshi’s mobile phone and instructed his security guards to confiscate and throw away the phone.
Qureshi later released another video where he said that the security personnel had grabbed him and Dar slapped him during the incident.
“While leaving, Dar told his security officers to follow me and teach me a lesson … those officers followed me till I reached the second floor of the Parliament,” he further said.
The incident was condemned by the Parliamentary Reporters Association (PRA), who strongly disapproved of the misbehavior by Dar’s security personnel and demanded an apology from the finance minister. They also said that such kind of behaviour ought not to be repeated in the future.
The PRA also said that they have the right to stage a walkout of the budget session and protest in case Dar refuses to apologise.
Pakistan's dilapidated financial situation
As per media reports, the cash-strapped Pakistan government has made exhaustive attempts to secure the IMF bailout package, as the programme is set to expire on June 30.
Pakistan currently has currency reserves that can barely cover imports for a month. Their attempts to secure the package were met with a set of conditions by the IMF before they provided any more funds to the country. Pakistan is also facing a rapid decline in foreign loan disbursements to just USD 8.4 billion this fiscal year.
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