LAHORE  - The Anti Corruption Establishment (ACE) arrested the Environment Protection Department former director general Shagufta Shahjehan after cancellation of her bail from a court on Monday, said spokesman for ACE.
The spokesman said that the accused was booked over corruption charges last year. Shagufta Shahjehan and four other EPD officials allegedly withdrew Rs3.5m from the Accountant General of Punjab’s office to pay rent for non-existent laboratories at Gujranwala, Sialkot, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Murree and Rahim Yar Khan in 2008-09 and 2009-2010.
The EPD took possession of buildings for three laboratories in Gujranwala, Murree and Faisalabad in March 2009. Two buildings were rented in Rawalpindi and Sialkot in April 2009 and one in Rahim Yar Khan in July 2009.
However, official records show that Rs3.5m had been withdrawn from accounts against rent for the buildings since July 2008. The inquiry was conducted by Farkhanda Wasim Afzal and Population Secretary Javed Akhtar under the Punjab Employees Efficiency, Discipline and Accountability Act, 2006 (PEEDA 2006).
The inquiry report, submitted on July 20, 2012, found the officials guilty of embezzlement. On Monday, Shagufta’s bail was cancelled by the court of Special Anti Corruption Judge Central.