PPP’s Mustafa Khokhar defends Bilawal’s asset valuation in nomination papers

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar on Monday defended party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari against objections over the value of his assets declared in nomination papers.

Bilawal earlier this month declared the value of his assets before the Election Commission of Pakistan, which showed the cost of Bilawal House in Karachi’s Clifton area at only Rs3 million – a figure that did not go unnoticed as social media users raised question marks over the value of the expansive residence.

The objections, however, were brushed aside by PPP’s Khokhar, who clarified that the party chairman declared his assets at cost as required by the tax authorities.

Khokhar, who also serves as chairman of the Senate Committee on Human Rights, told Hamid Mir on Geo News programme ‘Capital Talk’ that Section 116 of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001 stipulates that all taxpayers declare their assets at cost (the value at the time of purchase).

The PPP chairman inherited Bilawal House in 1990 as a gift from his mother (the late Benazir Bhutto Shaheed), Khokhar said, pointing out that the property was valued at Rs3 million at that time.

He added that Bilawal has declared all his wealth in the tax forms.