Finance Minister Ishaq Dar bullied at the airport in Washington
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar was bullied by unidentified protesters, supposed to be overseas Pakistanis, at Dulles International Airport in Washington on Thursday, where he arrived to hold negotiations with international lenders.
In a short video clip that went viral on social media, one of the protesters can be heard saying nasty words to Dar as the finance minister called the aggressor a “liar”.
The protester replies by calling Dar a “thief and a liar”. Another person, who is guarding the financial czar, threatens the man by saying that “he doesn’t know him” and also hurls abuses.
Earlier, Dar along with a delegation reached the US to hold negotiations with international lenders. During his four-day visit, Dar will meet officials of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank (WB), and other financial lenders.
He will also participate in the annual meeting of the IMF and the WB.
This is not the first time federal ministers have been jeered in public places on their trips abroad and even within the country. Last month, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb was heckled at a coffee shop in London. Earlier, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal was harassed by PTI supporters at a restaurant.
In April, a group of Pakistani pilgrims accosted, heckled, and chanted slogans against PM Shehbaz and his entourage at the Masjid-i-Nabwi in Madina during their three-day visit to Saudi Arabia.
Politicians and other religious figures condemned the incident and some blamed the PTI.
Finance Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar meets Mr. David Lipton, Counselor to the US Secretary Treasury on International Affairs in Washington. Pakistan’s Ambassador to US Masood Khan also present. pic.twitter.com/VlqXvG0oC8
— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinistryPak) October 13, 2022
