Remand of accused extendedin Ashiyana-e-Iqbal case

LAHORE: An Accountability Court on Tuesday extended for more 14 days physical remand of six accused, including former director general of Lahore Development Authority Ahad Khan Cheema for their alleged role in Ashiyana-e-Iqbal Housing Scheme scam.

However, the Punjab police brought another blot to their grace as police officials deployed for the security of NAB courts for Ahad Cheema case pretended themselves as personal security guards of the accused bureaucrat and barred media entry to the court premises.

The police barred media from coverage of the Ashiyana-e-Iqbal housing scam case, closed down the courtroom and behaved rudely with the reporters reached there to attend the court proceedings.

Police officials, who failed to produce any written document from the court authorities, kept insisting that they had been ordered by the judge to stop media persons from coverage of the Ashiyana housing scheme case. However, with the interference of the lawyers, the reporters were allowed to enter the courtroom.

Meanwhile, proceedings of other courts were also affected by the rude behaviour and unprofessional attitude of police who forced the litigants to stay away from the court premises.

The bureau officials produced the suspects, including former LDA DG Ahad Khan Cheema, Bismillah Engineering Company owner Shahid Shafiq, LDA Chief Engineer Israr Saeed, Punjab Land Development Company Chief Engineer Col (r) Arif Majeed, former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) PLDC Imtiaz Haider and another PLDC official Bilal Qudwai.

The counsel of the accused told the court that the contract was passed in accordance with the law while the government did not issue a single rupee for the contract. The counsel said that when there was not even a single rupee then how it could be said that huge amount was embezzled. He questioned that arrest of Ahad Khan Cheema and others made by NAB officials was unlawful as no prior inquiry was held into the matter in question.

However, NAB’s lawyer Waris Janjua opposed their arguments and said that important development took place during investigation of the accused persons, including Cheema. He pleaded the court to extend for more 15 days physical remand of the accused. However, the court extended for 14 days their physical remand and directed the NAB officials to produce them again on April 03.

Cheema was arrested last month for misusing his authority and, with criminal intent, processing and awarding Ashiana-e-lqbal project contract worth Rs14 billion to Lahore CASA Developers, a joint venture a firm which was ineligible for the same. The contract, in connivance with other accused persons, was awarded in violation of PPP Act, 2014.

NAB inquiry further revealed that Bismillah Engineering Services Co (a major shareholder of JV titled Lahore CASA Developers) was a proxy firm working on behalf of Paragon City (Pvt) Ltd.

Cheema allegedly received illegal gratification in the form of 32 kanals of land (valuing Rs30.09 million approximately from the owners of Paragon City (Pvt) Ltd. It is pertinent to mention here that the government is facing a liquidation loss of about Rs455 million as the estimate of the construction of Ashiana-e-Iqbal Housing Scheme has increased manifold due to delay in the project.