Imran Khan says will dispatch letter to IMF seeking polls audit today

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan said on Friday that he will dispatch the letter to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today (February 23), seeking an audit of the polls results before approving any new loan for the cash-strapped country.

In an informal conversation with journalists at Adiala jail, the former prime minister claimed that all state institutions, including the courts and National Accountability Bureau (NAB), were used to 'select' Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif in the elections.

Khan said that he had written a letter to the global lender as the incoming government was "imposed on the people of Pakistan through stolen mandate".

“Who will return the debts Pakistan gets in such circumstances?” the cricketer-turned-politician questioned, adding that it would only increase poverty in the country.

A day earlier, Imran Khan, through his lawyer Barrister Ali Zafar, sent an important message that he would write a letter to the IMF for an audit of the February 8 election before it strikes any deal with Islamabad.

On the other hand, Pakis­tan plans to seek a new loan of at least $6 billion from the IMF to help the incoming government repay billions in debt due this year, according to Bloomberg News.

The negotiation talks between the two are expe­cted to start in March or April, it said citing a government official.