PESHAWAR: The National Accountability Bureau, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has arrested a director and an assistant director of the Provincial Housing Authority (PHA) in a multi-million rupees scam related to purchase of land at exorbitant prices for a housing scheme in Nathiagali, Abbottabad district.

The NAB has already arrested five other persons, including four top officials in the scam, and they had presently been imprisoned at the Peshawar Central Prison.

Following their arrest, the two officials – director planning Salahuddin and assistant director planning Mohammad Yaqoob – were produced before a local accountability court which remanded them in NAB custody for seven days. The judge, Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, ordered that the two suspects be produced again on June 18.

The NAB stated that in 2012 the PHA had acquired land for a project tagged ‘housing scheme for government servants and general public’ at Darwaza area of Nathiagali at exorbitant rates, causing a huge loss to public exchequer.

Remanded in NAB custody for seven days

Initially, the approved site of the scheme was near the main Ayubia-Nathiagali road, but the PHA officials changed the site and acquired land away from the approved site at very high prices. The land worth up to Rs0.8 milion per kanal was purchased for up to Rs2.5 million per kanal through planting front men with the connivance of then top bureaucrats of PHA, including Sharifullah and Zakiullah.

The NAB had initially arrested three suspects, including former PHA director general Javed Ahmad, its land acquisition collector Naveed Qadir and a private person Mohammad Asif, who acted as their front man. Later, former secretary housing Zakiullah, who was working as member provincial inspection team at the time of his arrest, and PHA’s former director finance Sharifullah, presently working as Additional Accountant General Pakistan Revenue, were also arrested from Peshawar.

It is alleged that during inquiry it was revealed that Salahuddin being director planning PHA facilitated the other suspects in the embezzlement of Rs400 million by misusing his official power to get illegal kickbacks. Mr Yaqoob also allegedly assisted the other accused persons and paved the way for misappropriation of funds.

Published in Dawn, June 12th, 2014