Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States (US) Ali Jahangir Siddiqui has stepped down from his position, media reports said Monday.
According to reports, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has decided to appoint Dr Asad Majeed Khan as the new envoy, and he is expected to take the charge soon.
Siddiqui while stepping down from his ambassadorial assignment reportedly said that he was leaving the Pak-US ties in a better condition, adding that the two countries are getting engaged in the high-level contacts.
On Oct 4, the PTI government had announced to remove political appointees from key ambassadorial positions across the world.
Five ambassadors who were appointed at key world capitals during the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) tenure had earlier relinquished their offices.
Pakistan’s high commissioner to Canada Tariq Azeem Khan, ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Khan Husham bin Siddique relinquished their charge. The ambassadors to Morocco, Cuba and Serbia also handed over their charges to their second-in-command at the respective missions.
Meanwhile, Siddiqui is facing charges regarding the role of his company in the alleged manipulation of shares that resulted in a loss of billions of rupees to the national treasury. He is allegedly named in 19 inquiries pertaining to corruption, money laundering, and violation of the State Bank of Pakistan’s rules.
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry, in a media talk earlier, had said that Siddiqui was appointed on political grounds by the former PML-N government, therefore, it will be best for him to step down from the office himself or the government would be forced to remove him.
