Over 200 kanal land of a housing society was illegally transferred to Bahria Town

Over 200 kanal land of a cooperative housing society was illegally transferred to property tycoon Malik Riaz’s Bahria Town Lahore, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) said, Daily Dawn Reported.

NAB conducted an inquiry against officials of the Official Employees Cooperative Housing Society Ltd, revenue department and Bahria Town Lahore over the illegal transfer of the land.

“The inquiry proceedings unearthed that a piece of land measuring 204 kanals and three marlas worth billions of rupees, located in Mauza Manak and Mauza Bhai Kot, Tehsil Raiwind, Lahore, of the Official Employees Cooperative Housing Society Ltd was illegally and unlawfully transferred to M/s Bahria Town,” NAB said in a statement issued to the press and added that owing to the timely reporting of the fraudulent activity by Assistant Registrar (Housing-V) Jahanzeb Akbar, the entire land had been successfully restored.

“The land in question has been transferred back to its rightful owner — the Official Employees Cooperative Housing Society,” the bureau said.

The NAB chairman has appreciated Jahanzeb Akbar’s performance and issued a letter of appreciation for him to the Punjab chief secretary.

The NAB probe is underway as to how the officials of the Official Employees Cooperative Housing Society Ltd, revenue department and Bahria Town Lahore, in connivance with each other made the illegal transfer of the land in question.

The housing projects of Malik Riaz have come under scrutiny of NAB after the PML-N came to power. The bureau has already declared Malik Riaz an absconder in the Al-Qadir Trust case in which former prime minister Imran Khan is convicted.

Mr Riaz is currently in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and NAB has announced plans to bring him back through Interpol.

“The government is reaching out to the UAE for the extradition of Malik Riaz through legal channels,” NAB said and that Malik Riaz is an absconder in the case related to the repatriation of £190m through the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA), and is wanted by the court.

NAB has already frozen innumerable assets of Bahria Town and Malik Riaz. According to NAB, Riaz had illegally occupied public and private land to build his Bahria Town housing schemes.