Advisor to the Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on finance and interprovincial coordination Muzzammil Aslam has given a detailed response regarding the sugar scandal. He stated the Sugar Inquiry Commission was established by PTI founder Imran Khan in 2020. At that time, during a meeting, Imran Khan had said that the sugar mafia wanted to increase the sugar price to Rs.130 per kilogram during Ramadan, but due to the crackdown by the commission, the price remained at Rs.90 per kg.
Muzzammil Aslam expressed these views in a video statement here on Friday.The KP Finance Advisor said that in November 2020, the Competition Commission of Pakistan also issued notices and imposed penalties of Rs.44 billion on sugar mill owners. However, these penalties were halted in the tribunal.
Muzzammil Aslam said all this happened when conspiracies against Prime Minister Imran Khan had begun, and the case has not been pursued since then.
He further said that now, after four years, fresh notices have been issued again in the sugar cartelization case. These notices come after the public was ruthlessly exploited and sugar prices were driven up to Rs.200 per kilogram, yet the notices being issued now relate to actions taken during Imran Khan’s tenure.
Muzzammil Aslam said that the 2021 case is now directed to be decided within 90 days, and the federal government is using Imran Khan’s sugar commission report for this purpose. He added that it is being reported that around 20 sugar mills are personally owned by ministers and Advisors currently in the federal cabinet.
Muzzammil Aslam claimed that in July 2024, Shehbaz Sharif approved the export of 150,000 tons of sugar, and all provinces were instructed to allow sugar exports in proportion to their shares. He stated that the federal government had directed that as soon as the sugar price reached Rs.142–144, exports would stop. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur clearly refused to allow sugar exports.
The KP Cabinet decided that sugar export would not be allowed until the crushing season begins. However, before the crushing season started, the ECC (Economic Coordination Committee) issued an order to export 500,000 tons of sugar.
Muzzammil Aslam said that between October 2024 and the next three months, sugar prices were raised from Rs.142 to Rs.165, and immediately the ex-mill rate was set at Rs.180 per kilogram.
He added that now there is a sugar shortage in the country, and prices have reached up to Rs.210 per kilogram. Sugar has now become a major headache for the government.
Finally, the KP Finance Advisor demanded that Shehbaz Sharif release the sugar from his own mills and auction it at the Rs.142 price level, and any profit earned above this rate should be deposited into the national treasury.
Also read: Barrister Saif demands judicial commission on Rs. 38 billion sugar scandal
