Shehbaz Sharif accuses Imran Khan of selling Toshakhana gifts worth PKR 140 mn in Dubai

The new Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif on Friday accused his predecessor Imran Khan of selling Toshakhana gifts worth PKR 140 million in Dubai.

"Imran Khan sold these gifts for Rs 140 million in Dubai," PM Shehbaz was reported as telling journalists during an iftar he hosted a day earlier in the federal capital, reported Geo News. He said that the expensive gifts included diamond jewellery sets, bracelets and wristwatches.

Shehbaz's revelation came in response to a question regarding a petition seeking the details of the Toshakhana that had been filed in the Islamabad High Court on which then PM Imran Khan had commented that the details cannot be revealed as per the Official Secrets Act, 1923.

Meanwhile, a former federal minister and PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry, however, refuted PM Shehbaz Sharif's statement, saying that the new premier is "throwing dirt on Imran Khan", reported Geo News.

According to the law, whenever a head of state receives a gift from another state or country, they have to give it to the Toshakhana. If they wish to keep the gift, they have to pay an amount equal to its value which is decided through an auction.

These gifts either remain deposited in the Toshakhana or can be auctioned and the money acquired through it is to be deposited into the national treasury, reported Geo News.