Ex-minister Murid Kazim, others convicted in illegal land transfer case

PESHAWAR: An accountability court convicted former Revenue Minister Syed Murid Kazim on charges of misuse of authority in a case of illegal transfer of 1,976 kanal of state land in Dera Ismail Khan. The accountability court’s senior judge Ishtiaq Ahmad Khan sentenced the ex-minister and five other officials to 51 days of imprisonment for misusing their authority. The accountability court adopted leniency in awarding punishment to the accused in the case as the land has already been returned to the government. Murid Kazim was elected MPA a few times from his native Dera Ismail Khan and also served as a minister. He remained associated with different political parties, including the ANP. As per the detailed order, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutors proved the misuse of authority against the former revenue minister and other officials to seek their conviction in the case. It said the accused Murid Kazim in his tenure as Minister of Revenue, in connivance with the co-accused, got illegally transferred 1,976 kanal of state land to the Naval Families Rehabilitation Organisation (NFRO) in 2010.