After 'Jinnah' debacle, Pak UK envoy accused of misappropriating Rs 3.5 million

After 'Jinnah' debacle, Pak UK envoy accused of misappropriating Rs 3.5 million
ANJALI MODI

LONDON, MARCH 14: Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Britain Akbar Ahmed, who was in the news recently over the controversy regarding the script of Jinnah as well asmisappropriation of funds raised for the film, has been asked to refund Pak Rs 3.5 million (œ 20,000) taken from the High Commission's budget ``without authorisation from a competent authority''.

According to The Nation, Pakistan foreign office, in a letter to the bureaucrat-writer, said: ``This constitutes gross disregard for the principles of financial propriety which the High Commissioner is expected to uphold and is a serious violation of financial discipline and the rules which the heads of missions are required to observe.''

Ahmed, who started life as a civil servant, remained an ``Officer on Special Duty'' in London, deputed by the Pakistan Information Ministry, for all the time that he has lived in Britain, claiming to be an academic.

For his duties, the bureaucrat-writer was paid a daily allowance, a travel allowance and medical care, from the Information Ministry's budget. It appears, however, that payments were not always smooth. So, when he took over as High Commissioner, Ahmed simply paid himself some œ 5,000 from the High Commission's budget that were apparently owed to him by the Information Ministry. Despite long years as a government servant he appears to have overlooked the small -- but significant detail -- that ministry budgets cannot be fudged.

The letter, heavy with officialese from an additional secretary (administration), said that Ahmed had paid himself œ 7,066.95 for medical care without providing receipts, bills or prescriptions. The letter lists other irregularities in the manner that the High Commission's budget was being used to pay restaurant bills for ``entertainment'', to hire gardeners, buy air tickets and a dishwasher.

Instead of following the procedures, he simply used High Commission funds as if they were in his private bank account.

Ever since he took over in November last year, he has been dogged by controversy, mostly about money.

A few weeks ago, Indian-born writer and media person Farrukh Dhondy revealed that he had written the script for Jinnah, for which Ahmed raised the money and claimed to have written. Ahmad was accused of misappropriating funds raised for the film and transferring large sums into off-shore accounts held by his family.