Cholistan land probe: NAB sends questionnaires to Shahbaz, Sanaullah, Baligh

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Multan has sent a questionnaire to Opposition Leader in the National Assembly and President PML-N Shahbaz Sharif, ex-minister of state Balighur Rehman, former MNA Chaudhry Umair Mehmood and former law minister Punjab Rana Sanaullah Khan in the matter of allotting 14,400 kanal land to private persons as affectees of Lal Sohanara National Park.

According to NAB, questionnaires have been sent to these PML-N leaders and government officers concerned with initiation and processing of summary to explain their position by providing relevant information as per their roles as the summary was approved by former chief minister of Punjab and not by provincial cabinet.

According to NAB, no call up notice has been issued by the NAB Multan to said persons and only questionnaires have been sent to them to submit reply till May 18. An inquiry against officers/officials of Cholistan Development Authority, Shahbaz Sharif, Balighur Rehman and others is under process over the land allotment in 2013 to 144 private persons by considering them as affectees of Lal Sohanara National Park Bahawalpur. Allotment orders were issued by then managing director Cholistan Development Authority Javed Akhtar Mehmood allegedly without eligibility/locus standai of said 144 private persons. But the fact is that these 144 private persons were not affectees of Lal Sohanara National Park as they never possessed any piece of land included in the park.

The park was established by government of Punjab in 1972. Private occupants of the said land were accommodated by the then government by giving them alternate lands situated in Cholistan.

According to NAB report, Balighur Rehman helped the said 144 private persons by recommending their application for initiation of summary for allotment of Cholistan land to them by considering them as affectees of Lal Sohanara National Park. A summary was initiated by the Board of Revenue Punjab in 2012 for allotment of Cholistan land and it was approved by Shahbaz Sharif without its approval from provincial cabinet as was required as per law. Rana Sanaullah Khan as law minister endorsed the said summary allegedly without its referral to provincial cabinet.