Ishaq Dar denies allegation of taking any money, says ‘Imrandos’ are spreading fake news

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar called Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) a “disinformation army”.

In a media talk on Thursday, responding to a question by a journalist about him taking Rs72 crore in back salary, the minister said, “This is the disinformation army of PTI who malign everything” and termed them as “imrandos”.

“I didnt take a single penny and don’t have any intention to take any money,” he added.

During the talk, when asked about decreasing petrol prices, he said, “Abhi kal toh ki hai”. (We reduced the prices just now).

The finance minister also addressed the continuous depreciation of the US dollar against the rupee, saying that the greenback depreciated without him doing anything.

He also announced a power subsidy package for Pakistan’s export industries with per unit electricity cost set at Rs19.99.

Dar said the annual burden of the subsidy would amount to around Rs90-100 billion, adding that the “all-inclusive” package was announced for the five major exporting sectors, and not just the textile sector.

Meanwhile, in response to a question on whether the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was taken into confidence on the package, the finance minister said: “I don’t need to take the IMF into confidence, when I know what I am doing then it is my responsibility to create fiscal space for it and I have done so.”

Moreover, the minister said the market is now going in the “right direction” and correcting itself.