ISLAMABAD - The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has unearthed a mega corruption scam in Punjab where 946 acres of land worth Rs 5 billion owned by the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) were silently transferred to private individuals by officials of the provincial revenue department.
FIA’s Lahore zone has dug up the scandal under its Director Dr Usman Anwer. Usman yesterday told a high level committee held at the Ministry of Interior that the issue was also brought into the notice of the Punjab chief minister and then District Coordination Officer (DCO) and other officials of the revenue department at district Okara were suspended.
The prime land was located in Deepular area of district Okara and FIA has helped ETPB to transfer the land back to its name. The investigations of the case are under way with the help of an intelligence agency.
According to details, revenue department officials including then DCO Okara had allegedly transferred 946 acres of ETPB to some private persons while making the wrong interpretation of the Supreme Court order. The land was being illegally transferred since 1952. Dr Usman said that this was done in connivance with some officials of ETPB and some arrests would be made shortly from the board.
The director FIA Punjab also told the meeting that 238 kanals of land worth 4 billion illegally given to the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) Lahore had also been returned.
A performance evaluation meeting of FIA yesterday was held under the chair of Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan where all senior officers of FIA including its zonal heads participated.
Apparently perturbed over the high rate of bails in under-trial mega corruption cases, Nisar directed FIA to strengthen its legal team for taking the same to logical conclusion at the earliest.
“I am more interested in convictions and have reservations over weak investigations and doubts over closure of various inquiries,” he said.
Getting a briefing on steps being taken to curb human smuggling and illegal immigration consultancies, Additional DG Immigration FIA Wajid Zia said that as many as 1095 human smugglers had been arrested during the period from January 1 to October 31, 2015. In addition, 27 most wanted human traffickers on the red book had also been arrested.
The meeting was told that two model laws including an act to prevent and combat trafficking in persons especially women and children-2013 and an act to prevent and combat the smuggling of migrants by land, sea and air-2013 were pending with Law Division and the Ministry of Interior. The minister directed the relevant officers to proceed with the proposed legislation.
At present, Pakistan is currently on Tier-II watch list of human smuggling and facing threats that it would be included into Tier-III watch list due to the rising cases of human trafficking.
Nisar told the meeting that he was facing backlash from his own government over the suspension of re-admission (deportation) treaty with European Union but he would stand by the ‘principles’. The agreement signed by the previous regime is weak and one-sided and I have directed my ministry as well as Ministry of Foreign Affairs to make new SOPs for the signing of new agreement, he said.
The minister clarified that no international non-governmental organization (INGO) had so far been refused registration. “They still have time to apply for fresh registration after which the ministry will take some time,” he said.
The meeting was told that FIA had received from United States useful information relating to the Axact fake degree scam. “While some more documents about fake degrees, universities and bank accounts had been sought from the US,” Director FIA Islamabad zone Inam Ghani told the meeting. He said trial against the IT firm in money laundering case was underway.