GUJRAT: A Rs40 million financial scam in Gujrat Municipal Corporation (MC) has been unearthed, involving officials, including a former MC chief officer (CO), and others, who were found allegedly involved in withdrawing the amount on the pretext of making payments of compensation to sanitary workers through bogus bills and fake signatures.

The Gujranwala Anti Corruption Establishment (ACE) has booked the officials, including the incumbent chief officer of Gujrat district council Malik Ibrar (who had held additional charge of MC post), a Bank of Punjab (BoP) main branch manager Ms Memoona, Municipal Officer (finance) Rauf Ashraf Warraich, Deputy Director (audit and finance) Amir Majeed Warraich, Auditor Imran, Data Entry Operator Majid Rasheed and Naib Qasid (peon) Zaheer for their alleged involvement in the scam.

The case has been lodged under sections 409 of the Pakistan Penal Code and the Anti Corruption Act.

Official sources say that Gujranwala Commissioner Naveed Haider Sheerazi, who also holds the additional charge of Gujrat division commissioner, acting as Gujrat MC administrator, had been informed by the incumbent MC Chief Officer Khaliq Daad Gara about irregularities in payment of financial compensation to sanitary workers after conducting an initial inquiry.

One of the suspects, district council CO, still holding the post

Taking notice, the commissioner referred the matter to Gujranwala ACE circle for further inquiry and legal action.

The sources say that the ACE lodged the case against the suspects on November 8 and arrested at least three of them, who were nominated.

Official sources say different amounts were illegally withdrawn thrice against the bogus bills from the BoP main branch through cheques in the name of fictitious accounts showing different sanitary workers of the MC, during the current year.

They say that in his confessional statement recorded during initial departmental inquiry, a clerk Majid Rasheed revealed that some officials had first stolen the cheques and then, through fake signatures of three officials, got them cashed from BoP Islampura branch in Lahore.

One of the suspects, Gujrat district council Cheif Officer Malik Ibrar, held additional charge of Gujrat MC CO for around a year before Mr Gara was appointed on the post a couple of months ago.

Interestingly, Malik Abrar is still holding the district council CO office despite the registration of ACE case against him. He had earlier faced severe criticism due to his failure as CO in tackling the urban flooding issue during the recent monsoon rains. However, official sources add, the Punjab government may remove him from the post in a few days.

The ACE has launched further probe into the matter and its scope could be expanded further, the sources say.

Published in Dawn, November 11th, 2024