LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Lahore has launched a probe into the affairs of three housing schemes of the city for allegedly defrauding the general public. It has asked the affectees of the schemes to file their claims regarding the schemes with its Thokhar Niaz Baig office within next a day.

According to NAB, it had received complaints against the Punjab Cooperative Housing Society Ghazi Road, Cantonment, NFC Employees Cooperative Housing Society Phase-II near Sattukatla and Asia Town Gwadar (Asia Acre Scheme Ali Green Group) Lahore on various complaints.

These housing schemes were accused of making money in booking (for plots and houses), registration certificate and membership forms and committing fraud in allocation of plots.

The schemes could not provide gas, electricity and other facilities to the residents also.

Meanwhile, NAB has summoned the owners of the Al-Kabir Town and the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) officials in a case.

The owners of the Al-Kabir Town had allegedly defrauded the people and made billions of rupees in ‘collusion’ of the LDA officials.

NAB chairman retired Justice Javed Iqbal had recently asked LDA Director General Lahore Shahzad Saleem to launch an investigation into the matters of the Al-Kabir Town, which was allegedly launched without having the required land and no objection certificate (NOC) from the department concerned and sold 14,000 plots.

The chairman observed that the LDA had not fulfilled its responsibility in this regard.

“The LDA did not check the advertisement campaign of the Al-Kabir Town despite knowing that it was involved in a mega fraud,” the chairman said and ordered action against the LDA officials involved in this scam and recovery of the looted money to compensate the affectees.

Published in Dawn, March 17th, 2020