ISLAMABAD: Former adviser to prime minister Sayed Zulfiqar Bukhari said on Wednesday that he offered himself for inquiry into the Rawalpindi Ring Road scandal.
Talking to reporters at Islamabad Airport soon after returning from the United Arab Emirates, Bukhari said he would appear before any inquiry team if summoned to prove his innocence.
“Although Prime Minister Imran Khan had advised me not to resign, I decided otherwise to clear my name,” he said, expressing hope that soon truth would be separated from falsehood and his political opponents would be disappointed.
Bukhari said previously too he had proven his innocence and would succeed this time as well.
He had flown abroad on May 28 to attend what he said was an urgent matter.
After being named in the scam, Bukhari on May 17 had resigned to clear his name. He announced his resignation on Twitter saying: “My Prime Minister has always said that if a person has been named rightly or wrongly in any inquiry, he should cease to hold any public office till his name has been cleared of charges.”
He said: “Owing to the allegations in ongoing Ring Road inquiry, I want to set this example”. He also tweeted that by resigning from his position until his name was cleared up of any allegations and the obnoxious lies.
Later, it was reported that Bukhari did not resign from his post on his own but was forced by the prime minister to tender the resignation.
After the inside story of the saga came to the surface, Imran had summoned Bukhari for an explanation but he failed to do so.
The inquiry report had identified the liaison between Bukhari and a private real estate developer.
The Prime Minister Office has ordered an inquiry into the benami properties of the developer. The inquiry was ordered against two private housing societies, the sources added.
Proprietor of 10 housing schemes will also be investigated, the reports said. They divulged the PMO has also summoned the files from the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis for further scrutiny.
Reportedly, the main suspect in the road scandal, former Rawalpindi commissioner retired Capt Muhammad Mehmood who attempted to “mislead” Prime Minister Imran also got Bukhari’s support who vouched for him.
In his meeting with Imran, Bukhari had appreciated the services of Mehmood and spoke on his behalf. He requested the PM to restore his services. But the prime minister neither bought the argument nor lent his ear to the advice.
