The Tehreek-i-Tahafuz-i-Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) today formally requested Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Yahya Afridi to initiate a suo motu investigation into the recent sugar crisis. The organization wants the CJP to establish a three-member judicial committee to probe the matter.

TTAP spokesperson, Akhunzada Hussain Ahmed, confirmed the request was submitted on behalf of several political leaders, including Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Allama Nasir Abbas, Asad Qaiser, and Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar. The group seeks the formation of a judicial commission to examine the sugar crisis and pinpoint those accountable.

The request alleges several powerful families within the administration have ties to the sugar business, creating a conflict of interest and exploiting public positions for personal financial gain. It also criticizes the inaction of accountability organizations despite the alleged misappropriation of billions.

This action follows recent disclosures in the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC). The Auditor General of Pakistan reportedly revealed sugar mill proprietors earned over Rs. 300 billion in excessive gains during the current sugar predicament.

PAC Chairman Junaid Akbar Khan identified 42 families as the main recipients of these profits. Committee member Riaz Fatyana asserted the public lost Rs. 287 billion due to manipulated price increases. He questioned the rationale behind tax breaks granted through special regulatory orders (SROs), which benefited certain parties.

Another committee member, Aamir Dogar, claimed Asif Ali Zardari, Jahangir Tareen, and the Sharif family own a substantial number of sugar mills. Sanaullah Mastikhel added that each one-rupee sugar price hike results in Rs. 44 billion in mill profits.

The TTAP’s appeal to the CJP stresses the urgency of judicial action to rebuild public confidence, ensure accountability, and bring clarity to a situation that has financially impacted millions of Pakistanis.