LAHORE: A police officer probing a case of 200 kanal land grab in the Defence Housing Authority was transferred in a major reshuffle of SP rank officers on Friday.

Some 50 kanals of the land is in the possession of an influential business group.

After the registration of a case with Heyr police station in October this year, Capital City Police Officer Umar Sheikh had handed over its investigation to Cantt SP Dr Anoosh Masood Chaudhry.

Complainant Zulqernain Chaudhry told police that ownership of his family’s valuable property was got transferred by Arshad Ansari, an attendant of his father when he (the complainant) and his sister were in their teens. Zulqernain said since his father was in coma due to poor health, Ansari forged documents to sell the property and since then a case was in the court.

He said influential persons of the city, including Sheikh Yaqoob and his son-in-law Sheikh Faisal, started construction on his father’s land to establish a marquee (marriage hall) despite a stay order granted by a local court. The police nominated Ansari as the prime accused in the FIR besides other persons and asked the CCPO to take initiative under prime minister’s policy against land grabbers.

The official said another development took place when the investigation officer of the case and the DSP concerned transferred the case file to the Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment.

When the matter came to the notice of the CCPO, he showed his utter displeasure and suspended the investigation officer of the Heyr police station and transferred the DSP.

Side by side, investigation SSP Abdul Ghaffar Qaisrani also intervened into the matter and called both parties to his office to hear them.

Mr Qaisrani’s letter of advice to Dr Chaudhry also came to the limelight when she responded in tough words to the SSP investigation for making undue interference in her official matters. The correspondence between the two officers reached the police high-ups and remained under discussion at higher police forums.

On Friday the IGP transferred Dr Anoosh.

According to the notification, Punjab Assistant Inspector General Inquiries Tauseef Haider was transferred and posted as crime investigation agency SP, Lahore, against an existing vacancy.

Mianwali investigation SP Mohammad Irshad Zahid was transferred and posted as Lahore Cantt SP investigation.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2020