Faisal Vawda, the former leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf, said on Monday that those who were involved in the murder of journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya were powerful and were great planners so he wouldn’t provide them with any leads that could help them save themselves.

Vawda appeared before the fact-finding committee of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Sharif’s murder case after he and another PTI leader Murad Saeed were summoned for investigation.

“I told the FIA that Arshad Sharif had been murdered under a conspiracy which was hatched in Pakistan,” he said while talking to the media persons outside the FIA headquarters in Islamabad.

“The fact-finding committee is doing an excellent job. I hope it will reach those big people who are not touched,” Vawda told the reporters and reiterated his claim that Sharif was shot from a close range.

He said that Sharif’s mobile phone or laptop could not be found because all of it has been destroyed

Replying to a question regarding PML-N spokesperson Tasneem Haider’s statement that the conspiracy to assassinate PTI chief Imran Khan and slain journalist Arshad Sharif was hatched in a meeting with Nawaz Sharif, Vawda said that it was better if the matter should be kept above politics and one should not make silly jokes regarding the serious issue of Sharif’s murder.

“The evidence of Arshad Sharif’s murder has not been produced yet,” the former PTI leader said adding that Salman Iqbal [Chairman ARY Group] had nothing to do with this murder.

Vawda said that Sharif was his friend and had remained in touch with him.

Murad Saeed writes letter to FIA in response of summon

Former federal minister and PTI leader Murad Saeed expressed reservation over the fact-finding committee of the FIA.

According to the details the PTI leader wrote a letter to the FIA’s fact-finding committee asking the agency to reply 10 questions.

The fact-finding committee had summoned Faisal Vawda and Murad Saeed, Faisal Vawda appeared, however, Murad Saeed did not appear and expressed his reservations through a letter to the FIA.

Saeed said in his letter that the fact-finding committee was a part of the federal government in terms of its structure and status, FIA and IB officials were subordinate to the federal government and accountable to the federal interior minister.

“Arshad Sharif’s life was in danger, but instead of providing him protection, the federal government continued to take hostile action,” he said.

“Interior Minister made very irresponsible statements several times on Arshad Sharif’s murder,” he said, adding that the interior minister also tried to link the murder to the gold smuggling in Kenya.

“In the context of the current situation and the attitude of the federal government, an impartial, transparent and independent inquiry cannot be expected from the FIA,” the former federal minister stressed.

Saeed, a close friend of Arshad Sharif, said that his mother had requested the formation of a judicial commission to find out who was threatening and harassing Arshad Sharif.

He said that the role of the federal government was also controversial regarding the official autopsy of Arshad Sharif.

‘For whom was Arshad Sharif’s investigative journalism a threat’?

Arshad Sharif’s murder

Arshad Sharif was shot dead by Kenyan police in what they claimed was a case of “mistaken identity” some kilometers away from the capital city on October 23, while he was returning from Magadi Town.

Sharif moved out of Pakistan in August this year after a sedition case was filed against him over controversial remarks made by PTI leader Shahbaz Gill in his programme on a private news channel.