Key points
- PM orders early completion of legal formalities for acquiring land
- University to be established in Islamabad
- Planned university to offer quality education: PM Shehbaz
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has announced the establishment of a university in Islamabad utilising the £190 million worth of funds returned by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) after settling a money laundering case involving a Pakistani business tycoon.
The NCA-returned money was supposed to be deposited into the federal government’s account directly, according to the government.
However, former prime minister Imran Khan’s cabinet allowed real estate baron Malik Riaz to utilise the money to pay off a penalty imposed on his Bahria Town real estate development company by the country’s supreme court in a land scam case, the government said.
The funds were transferred to the Supreme Court’s account.
Since then, the government has been trying to retrieve the money.
Amount retrieved
The amount was finally transferred by the Supreme Court to the federal government’s account.
The prime minister, while chairing a committee meeting for the establishment of the planned Daanish University of Applied and Emerging Sciences, expressed his gratitude to the Chief Justice of Pakistan for ensuring the smooth transfer of the £190 million to the federal government account.
He said this amount would be utilised for building a state-of-the-art university in the nation’s capital.
Quality education
Speaking on the occasion, the prime minister highlighted that Daanish University would be an institution where deserving and talented students will receive high-quality research-based education.
He directed the early completion of legal formalities for acquiring land in Islamabad for the university.
The prime minister also instructed the swift finalisation of the university’s charter and other legal matters. Furthermore, he emphasised that Daanish University should be developed as an international-standard technical and applied sciences university.
He further directed that the university’s architecture should reflect simplicity, with buildings constructed using red bricks and avoiding unnecessary expenditures to minimize costs.
He also instructed to recruit highly qualified faculty and teachers for the university, which would be equipped with state-of-the-art technology and advanced research facilities.
