ISI, IB team to probe financial corruption of FIA officers

Islamabad
In a rare development, Ministry of Interior would constitute a high-powered inquiry committee on Thursday (today) comprising, for the first time, officials of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Intelligence Bureau (IB) to probe the allegations of financial corruption and misuse of power against a number of officers of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), the sources told ‘The News’ here on Wednesday.
“The modalities have been finalised and the committee would be announced on Thursday that would have access to the official record and can also summon the FIA officers allegedly involved in financial corruption and misuse of power,” the sources said.
The sources said the representatives of ISI and IB were especially invited to a recent meeting in which Minister for Interior Ch Nisar Ali Khan held initial discussion with them over the inquiry against the corrupt FIA officers.
The sources said that the proposed committee to submit report to the Ministry of Interior that would take action in line with the findings of the inquiry team.
The sources claimed that all the FIA officers allegedly involved in illegal acts or practices would be brought to book within next ninety days and every kind of political pressure would straightly be thwarted to purge the agency of the corrupt elements.
They said the interior minister was shocked to know that the FIA investigation officers deliberately adopted go-slow policy with regard to mega scandals related to Employees Old-age Benefits Institution (EOBI), Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB), Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Pakistan State Oil (PSO) and Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
The official record showed that more than 150 inquiries into cases of allotment of precious plots to private schools, exploitation of power, irregular allotment of plots in Said Pur village, corruption in allotment of plot to Hayat Regency Hotel, allotment of plot No 21 to cinema in Karachi company, allotment of shops in the market of G-6/3 and a restaurant and arts and crafts village were still pending with FIA.
The sources said the minister had noted that no progress had been made in investigations into major corruption cases for quite some time and nobody was ready to lay hands on bigwigs who had plundered billions of rupees.
It is pertinent to mention here that the FIA Punjab director, Lahore Zone, on 25th of this month suspended seven FIA officials, including four inspectors, and issued them show cause notices on the charges of financial corruption, misuse of authority, and high-handedness.
When contacted, the spokesman for the Ministry of Interior confirmed to ‘The News’ that all the modalities had been finalised for constitution of a committee that would probe the allegations against the FIA officers.
To a question, he said, “The inquiry committee would also include officials of ISI and IB that would submit their report to the interior ministry.”
Replying to another question, he said the interior minister had stated a number of times that there would be zero tolerance against corruption and misuse of power and those who were found involved in such practices would certainly face the music.