ISLAMABAD, JAN 12: Pakistan cricket star-turned-politician, Imran Khan, today accused Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of ``political victimisation'', one day after Government officials formally charged his wife with smuggling antique tiles. British-born Jemima Khan, the daughter of the late millionaire businessman Sir James Goldsmith, was sending 397 tiles to her mother in London in December when the package was seized by Customs authorities at Lahore.Later, the archaeological department examined the tiles and said in a report that the tiles were ``of paramount archaeological interest and belonged to the Islamic era.'' The Department contends that the tiles were 300 to 400 years old and are similar to those stolen from different archaeological sites of the country.While it is illegal in Pakistan to export antiques, the practice continues unabated with pieces worth several million dollars leaving the country in a year. Observers say that the practice was conducted with the active involvement of the Customsauthorities. An antique statue of Ganesh, a Hindu deity, was stopped at the last minute from leaving the country last week but the British national who was exporting the item, was not arrested.In this case of the export of tiles, however, the person is none other than Jemima Khan, a British national, who is currently in the UK. Under law, if it is proven that Jemima Khan was involved in the smuggling of antiques, she could face a three-year jail sentence and a fine of Rs 5000.But Imran Khan argues that the case instituted against her wife was false. ``The case is fake. I will file a defamation case against the Customs Department which has become a tool in the hands of the Government in victimising political opponents,'' Imran Khan told journalists in Karachi. He said the tiles were purchased from a shop in the Federal capital, Islamabad.Khan said that the shop had given his wife a certificate that the tiles were not antiques. But the Archaeological Department has so far stood its ground. TheDepartment has said that the ceramic tiles that were on the verge of being shipped abroad by Jemima Khan were valuable antiques. After exhaustive studies, the Department's northern circle told the Customs Department last week that the tiles were of ``paramount archaeological interest and belong to the Islamic era.''
