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Wajid Khan: Ontario Tory MP charged under the Elections Act

Source: NationalPost.com, 23-nov-07

Wajid Khan accused of campaign overspending

OTTAWA • Wajid Khan, an Ontario Conservative MP, has been charged with overspending during the 2004 election.

Mr. Khan, a former Liberal who crossed the floor to the Conservatives this year, was charged with exceeding his campaign expense limit by $30,000 under the Elections Canada Act, according to Dan Brien, spokesman for the Public Prosecution Service of Canada.

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Along with his business, Dufferin Mazda, and his former riding president Khalid Sagheer, Mr. Khan was also charged with election campaign spending that wasn’t authorized by his official agent, Mr. Brien said.

The charges were laid Nov. 15 in Ontario Superior Court in Brampton, Ont.

Mr. Khan, who represents the Toronto-area riding of Mississauga-Streetsville, is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 8.

Mr. Khan announced late Friday he was withdrawing from the Conservative caucus to sit as an independent MP, CTV News reported Friday night.

“The decision was made following media reports that he may be charged under the Elections Act over matters dating back to the 2004 election, when he ran as a candidate for the Liberal party,” read a news release issued late Friday from Mr. Khan’s office, according to CTV.

“Although I have not yet been served with court documents, given the circumstances, I am withdrawing from the Conservative caucus to sit as an independent MP,” said the statement. “I have also offered the prime minister my resignation as his special advisor for Middle Eastern and South Asian Affairs.”

Mr. Khan was criticized for accepting the appointment as special advisor to the prime minister on the Middle East in August, 2006, while he was still a Liberal MP.

He travelled to the Middle East from Sept. 10 to Sept. 29, visiting Syria, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Israel and Lebanon.

Mr. Khan’s refusal to provide a report on that trip, during which he claimed $12,764.30 in expenses, had Liberals portraying the trip as a junket designed to woo Mr. Khan to cross the floor, rather than a serious foreign-policy exercise.

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November 23rd, 2007 News | no comments | Email it! | Print This Post Print This Post | 94 views

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