PTI's Punjab CM nominee paid blood money to settle murder case: sources

MULTAN: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) nominee for Punjab chief minister Sardar Usman Buzdar paid blood money to resolve a murder case against him, Geo News learnt on Saturday.

According to police, a case was registered against Buzdar and his father for plotting murder after six men were killed in a firing incident during the 1998 polls.

The sources said that a case was registered against 20 people over involvement in the murder, adding that the people had opened fire while campaigning for Buzdar.

A court had declared the PTI’s nominee for Punjab CM and others offenders in the case, police sources said.

However, Buzdar and his father paid Rs750,000 as blood money and settled the case, police sources added.

Additionally, another allegation pertaining to Buzdar making 300 bogus appointments during his tenure as nazim has also surfaced. 

However, Buzdar's brother dismissed the allegations as baseless, adding that the National Accountability Bureau had dropped the case after it failed to find sufficient evidence.

On Friday, Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced Buzdar's name as a candidate for the post of CM Punjab via a video message. 

Buzdar is an advocate and a landlord by profession. Born in May 1969, in the tribal stretch of Dera Ghazi Khan in Punjab, Buzdar is the eldest of five brothers and sisters. While he received his early education from his family village, Barthi, he later enrolled at Multan’s Bahauddin Zakariya University for a masters in political science and then completed an LLB.

PM Imran reposes confidence in Buzdar

Prime Minister Imran Khan remarked on Saturday that he stands by PTI’s nominee for CM Punjab.

“I have done my due diligence over the past [two] weeks [and] have found him to be an honest man. He has integrity [and] stands by my vision [and] ideology of Naya Pakistan,” Imran remarked in a tweet.

He further explained that Usman hails from one of the “most backward areas of Punjab”, adding that the area has “no electricity, water or a doctor for over 200,000 [people].”

Buzdar understands the problems of the people living in neglected areas and will be able to ensure their uplift as a chief minister.

“This is the first time Punjab will have a CM from such a neglected area who is acutely aware of what has to be done there. I fully back him all the way,” he added.