LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) may approach the interior ministry to get a red warrant issued through Interpol for Kamran Kayani after his family refused to accept summons issued for him by the bureau in the Rs16 billion DHA City scam.

“We served the summons at the residence of Kamran Kayani but his family refused to accept it,” a source in the bureau told Dawn on Monday, adding that they would send a reminder notice. “If Mr Kamran avoids appearance before NAB, it may write to the interior ministry to get a red warrant issued for him through Interpol,” he said.

Retired Brig Amjad Kayani, a brother of Kamran Kayani, told Dawn that he was not aware of any NAB notice for Kamran. “I have no knowledge of it,” he said. When asked if Kamran will be joining the NAB investigation, he said: “I cannot say anything as I am not aware of that as well.”

Earlier, Amjad Kayani had told a private TV channel that since his brother was not involved in any wrongdoing, he had no issue in joining the bureau’s investigation into the scam.

Mr Kamran, a brother of former army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, is currently in Dubai. Another source claimed that Kamran had been discussing with his ‘friends’ in the government whether he should join the investigation or not. “Kamran may not appear before the NAB unless he is given certain guarantees,” said the source.

Meanwhile, NAB has conducted several raids in the city and taken into custody records of the principal accused firm – Globaco. According to a source, the bureau has also detained two accomplices of Hammad Arshad, the owner of Globaco. The bureau, however, did not confirm the arrests.

Interestingly, the Defence Housing Authority (DHA), which had earlier not named Kamran’s company, Elysium Holdings Pakistan, in the scam, has now declared it an accused firm along with Globaco.

According to NAB, Globaco had signed an agreement with DHA EME in Nov 2009, agreeing to develop DHA City Lahore on a plot of land measuring 25,000 kanals near Thokhar Niaz Baig. The firm could only manage to purchase 13,103 kanals of land, and that too, scattered.

Meanwhile, Mr Arshad collected money from the general public to the tune of Rs15.47bn by issuing allotment letters and later transferred the same to his personal accounts. The accused used the funds for personal gains and invested them in other business ventures, the bureau said, adding that no development work took place in DHA City Lahore.

Thus, he cheated the general public, families of soldiers and shuhada and deprived them of their hard-earned money. Of the total amount the principal accused received from the public, he spent only Rs1.82bn to acquire the 13,103 kanals of land, it said.

So far, there are more than 11,715 affected persons registered with the DHA, which claims that Globaco – now known as Orange Holding Private Limited – an offshoot of Eden Private Limited, “intentionally kept delaying the project and gave different options for more financial gains.”

Mr Arshad is currently in NAB’s custody on physical remand till Jan 26.

Published in Dawn, January 19th, 2016