Salik Hussain stands by Punjab corruption remarks as Maryam Nawaz sends notice

Federal Minister Chaudhry Salik Hussain, a leader of the PML-Q, said he stands by his statement that corruption is taking place in Punjab. He spoke in an informal conversation with journalists in Islamabad.

Asked whether corruption was happening, he replied "بالکل ہو رہی ہے" (Urdu for "it is certainly happening"). He did not answer a journalist's question about whether the Punjab government would present evidence of the corruption allegations.

Mr Hussain said the interview on which his remarks were based was about three weeks old and that the deputy commissioner had already been posted before it. He said a question was put to him in a routine interview and that he answered honestly. He also denied any intention of diverting attention from the provinces.

Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, speaking to students in Attock, said she would send Mr Hussain a defamation notice. She said he should present evidence rather than make accusations, and that she would go to court if he has none.

Ms Nawaz also asked why, if the government is so corrupt, he sits in it as a minister. She said a person who comes through recommendation ruins the country and its people.

Notices have been sent to Mr Hussain, the host of a private TV channel and the channel's chairman over the remarks. Ms Nawaz's lawyer described the allegations in the legal notice as baseless, unverified and defamatory, and said Mr Hussain presented no evidence.

Minute Mirror reported that Mr Hussain, federal minister for overseas Pakistanis, criticised the Punjab government in a television interview. He said he heard daily stories of corruption and that complaints had grown beyond what files could contain. He also criticised the distribution of the provincial development budget, alleging political considerations influenced spending.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari said a federal minister should bring forward evidence rather than make accusations, and that he would face legal action if he failed to substantiate them. She said appointments are made on merit, that recommendations have ended, and that anger over the choice of a deputy commissioner in Gujrat was not justified. She added that funds were reaching smaller cities, with projects such as electric buses, housing schemes, scholarships and sanitation extending beyond Lahore.