DG KHAN/BAHAWALPUR: Justice Shujaat Ali Khan of the Lahore High Court, Bahawalpur Bench, on Monday granted protective bail to former Punjab chief minister Sardar Usman Buzdar in a case instituted by the Anti-Corruption Establishment’s (ACE) Dera Ghazi Khan circle a day earlier.

Mr Buzdar’s counsel AR Aurengzeb, who is president of the High Court Bar Association, Bahawalpur, told Dawn that his client has been granted protective bail till June 30 in the case registered by ACE, adding that the former chief minister will now have to appear before the relevant court in DG Khan and apply for bail.

According to the counsel, DG Khan ACE circle registered a case against Mr Buzdar and his brothers for allegedly preparing a fake allotment order of 884 kanals of state land worth Rs4,346,4016.

Sources say that two complaints were lodged by one Bashir Ahmed Chohan with DG Khan deputy commissioner’s office against alleged bogus land allotment.

After inquiry the ACE registered two cases against 13 suspects, including Mr Buzdar, his brothers and revenue officers and officials concerned under sections 420, 471, 409 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and 5, 2, AND 7 of the PCA.

According to first information report, during the course of record verification of said mutation of land, it transpired that state land was illegally, fraudulently and in connivance with revenue officers and officials was allotted to Mr Usman Ahmed Buzdar, Umer Buzdar, Tahir Khan Buzdar, M Khan Chakarani, Ahmed Khan, Noor Muhammed and Mehmood Khan, Jaffar Buzdar, Ayube Buzdar, Allah Bakhash and Adim in 1982.ACE investigation reveals that girdawari (record of cultivation by the farmer) was changed in favour of Buzdar brothers in 1990.

As per investigation, in violation of Martial Law regulations vide No 115 para 18, land was allotted to the Buzdars in mauza Chouni of tehsil Taunsa Sharif. Talking to the media outside the court, the former chief minister alleged the government was using “lame excuses” to implicate him and his family members in false cases.

He said by he was not afraid of such pressure tactics of the government and would face the “false charges” framed against him.

Similarly, Jaafar Buzdar, brother of former chief minister, said politically motivated cases were being registered against them, claiming that they lawfully owned the said land and no illegality or fraud was committed in this connection.

Published in Dawn, June 21st, 2022