MULTAN: National Accountability Bureau’s Multan chapter has decided to file a reference against four income tax officers for causing a Rs140 million loss by issuing bogus tax refund orders.

A NAB spokesman, Additional Director Ahmad Mumtaz Bajwa, said former income tax officer Javed Iqbal Malik, additional commissioner Javed Fakhri Dahar, ITO Kunwar Abdur Rahim and ITO Muhammad Khawar Ilyas, during their posting in income tax zone Bahawalpur in 2006-07, had issued bogus income tax refund orders worth Rs140 million in the name of people while showing them as contractors.

Investigation Officer Mehr Ali Gilani found the officials guilty.

The regional board of NAB Multan, at a meeting chaired by Director General Tariq Mehmood Nadeem, gave approval to file a reference against the officials, says an official release.

Meanwhile, the NAB Multan has completed investigation into four cases filed against a real estate business entity, Kazmi Associates.

Accused Azhar Husain Kazmi, in 2007-08, had received money from many people but did not allot plots to them in ‘Ali Garden Housing Scheme’.

Investigations showed that he was not the owner of the land. The accused, however, requested the NAB authorities to allow him to return Rs13.776 million to the affected people through plea bargain. The regional board approved the request after a discussion and on the recommendations of IO Tahir Rasool.

Moreover, in other cases relating to Kazmi Associates’ projects including Khayaban-i-Ali Housing Scheme of Khanewal, Khayaban-i-Ali Housing Scheme of Multan commonly known as Bodla Town, and Husainabad Housing Scheme of Bahawalnagar, the accused received money from people but did not transfer plots to them despite the passage of 10 years.

The accusations levelled against the accused were found to be correct during the course of investigation and he has now transferred the plots to owners.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2015

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