Federal Cabinet okays making Toshakhana record public
The cabinet also approved uploading the Toshakhana record on the Cabinet Division website.
Federal Cabinet okays making Toshakhana record public!
The federal government on Thursday decided to make the record of Toshakhana public, accepting the recommendations of a committee of ministers.
The cabinet also approved uploading the Toshakhana record on the Cabinet Division website.
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday confirmed that the federal cabinet has allowed declassifying of the Toshakhana record.
In a tweet, he said that the record will be released on the website of the Cabinet Division soon.
کابینہ نے توشہ خانہ کا ریکارڈ ریلیز (declassify)کرنے کی اجازت دے دی یہ ریکارڈ انشاءاللہ بہت جلد کابینہ ڈویژن کی ویب سائٹ پہ پوسٹ کر دیا جائے گا۔
— Khawaja M. Asif (@KhawajaMAsif) March 9, 2023
The Toshakhana department, a state repository that stores gifts received by public officeholders from other governments and foreign dignitaries, public, was established in 1978.
All the public officeholders, including parliamentarians and bureaucrats, are bound to report the gifts to the Cabinet Division.
The federal government earlier this year told the Lahore High Court (LHC) that public disclosure of Toshakhana details could cause unnecessary media hype and could be potentially damaging to the country’s foreign relations.
However, the LHC remarked that it would hold off on an order to make details of the Toshakhana gifts public until it would be satisfied that these gifts were kept secret.
The Toshakhana department came under the limelight when proceedings were initiated against former prime minister Imran Khan for not sharing details of Toshakhana gifts retained by him.
