Gilani returns Turkish necklace to govt

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Gilani returns Turkish necklace to govt

The staff of Gilani approached the Cabinet Division with the necklace but they were told the division had no clue how to accept its return. It advised them to contact Foreign Office for the purpose.

By Afzal Khan

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Published: Sun 28 Jun 2015, 12:05 AM

Last updated: Wed 8 Jul 2015, 2:59 PM

Islamabad — Having reluctantly admitted possession of the diamond necklace donated by Turkish First Lady Emina Erdogan, former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday found it hard to find the appropriate authority to return it.

The staff of Gilani approached the Cabinet Division with the necklace but they were told the division had no clue how to accept its return. It advised them to contact Foreign Office for the purpose. The Foreign Office also declined it to accept saying some legal procedure would have to be devised for this purpose. It was finally accepted by authorities in the National Database Regulatory Authority (Nadra).

The necklace became a source of embarrassment for the former premier when the media printed stories about its mysterious disappearance and later traced it to Gilani’s house. This became the focus of a controversy between the Interior Ministry and the former premier.

The necklace donated in 2010 by Mrs Erdogan for flood-stricken people of Pakistan had disappeared prompting Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan to order the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to investigate the matter.

Gilani appeared before the FIA’s officials on Thursday and agreed to return it.

news@khaleejtimes.com 


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