ACE arrests three SBCA officers in raid on Gulshan office

The Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) East zone on Thursday arrested three officers during a raid at an office of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA).

The raid was conducted at the SBCA’s Gulshan Town office, in which ACE officials claimed to have seized evidence of illegal slicing of a hill to carve out a plot to extend a marriage hall, and other illegal constructions in Gulistan-e-Jauhar. The establishment arrested three SBCA officers and registered a case.

According to a spokesperson for ACE, the raid was carried out with the magisterial cover at the office of the SBCA Gulshan Town director over allegations of allowing several illegal constructions, floor violations and constructions without approved plan, and slicing of amenity land, which included a hill, to carve out a plot for a marriage hall.

The spokesperson added that evidence for the involvement of SBCA officers and their beneficiaries in offence had been obtained and their corrupt practices had caused a loss of Rs150 million to the national exchequer.

Explaining the method that had been adopted to illegally carve out a plot from the hill, the spokesperson said firstly the relevant executive engineer (XEN) of the Karachi Development Authority helped one of the beneficiaries to slice the hill adjoining the Marquee marriage hall at plot No C 198/3 Block 1 Gulistan-e-Jauhar to grab 300 square yards of the amenity land for commercial purposes. Later, the SBCA officers received bribes from the beneficiary and neglected the matter, which was tantamount to tacit approval for illegal construction.

In other incidents of corrupt practices involving plot No C 70, Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block 4 and plot No 1336, Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block 12, the same team of officers allowed illegal construction of floors after receiving bribes.

The spokesperson said the buildings in question had been sealed after the registration of an FIR. The arrested SBCA officers were identified as Assistant Director Rehan, Building Inspector Zulfiqar and Building Inspector Asif who would be produced before court for remand, the spokesperson said, adding that efforts were going on to arrest other suspects.