HYDERABDA: Two officers of Hyderabad Development Authority appeared before Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) on Wednesday in response to a notice issued by the ACE circle officer, requiring them to join a probe into issuance of fake notices to private schools’ owners by the authority’s contractual employee.

The circle officer had written a letter, second in a row, to the HDA director general and requested him to direct the authority’s secretary Aslam Kazi and additional director Nadeem Khan to join the investigation on Aug 6. The ACE had lodged an FIR into the fake notices issue on the request of HDA DG Asghar Ghanghro.

Khan told Dawn that he and the secretary had submitted the documents sought by the Circle Officer. Details of the officers’ statements could not be obtained.

The Circle Officer had asked the officers to produce a report dated May 9, 2025, along with supporting documents; complete service profile of Khadim Hussain Junejo, a contractual employee of HDA; detail of additional director P&DC (Planning & Development Control) and assistant directors of talukas of Latifabad and Qasimabad who held the posts between Jan-May 2025; copies of outward registers of the directorate of P&DC for Jan-May 2025.

Ghanghro had said in his May 9 letter addressed to ACE’s deputy director Hyderabad that owners of three schools and a medical store in Latifabad received notices, purportedly issued from HDA offices, on April 17, May 5 and 8, which were found to be fake on verification.

He said the recipients of the notices informed that Ghulam Rasool Junejo, a former BS-18 deputy director of HDA who had since been suspended, and his brother Khadim Hussain Junejo, a contractual employee in HDA, visited them after they received the notices and issued them threats.

He requested the ACE officer to conduct an inquiry against the Junejo brothers as they were ‘extorting huge amount’ from various establishments, rendering huge losses to the government.

In the light of Ghanghro’s letter, ACE Circle Officer Khalid Mehmood Khanzada lodged an FIR under relevant Sections (vide crime No 2/25), incorporating his findings into the FIR.

He said that Khadim Hussain was directly involved in serving unauthorized and forged notices on private institutions, making them believe these were official communication from HDA.

The FIR said that he (Khadim) admitted to serving certain notices and the fact was corroborated with multiple evidences including CCTV footage and forged documents. He did not disclose origin of the fake notices to the recipients.

According to the FIR, his identity was corroborated by HDA’s additional director Nadeem Khan and by another additional director Ghulam Mohammad Arain who denied having issued such notices as they did not have official outward registration. Hence, the FIR was lodged against Khadim Hussain for issuing fake notices for ulterior motives.

Through these notices, private entities were blackmailed for illegal construction of commercial projects and were asked to provide certain documents including no objection certificates for land use conversion, approved building plan etc.

The Circle Officer had sent a communication to DG HDA on July 23 in which he had requested that HDA secretary and director P&DC should be directed to join the investigation by attending office on July 28 along with the required record.

When they did not appear before him, he wrote again to the DG to ensure presence of the secretary Aslam Kazi and additional director Nadeem Khan.

In his July 10 submission, the DG HDA sent to Sindh Secretary Local Government, he had mentioned that Ghulam Rasool Junejo was appointed in HDA as naib qasid in BS-1 in 1986 and then on the recommendation of departmental promotion committee he was appointed as draughtsman in BS-10 on Sept 30, 1993, and posted in P&DC.

According to the DG, Junejo proved guilty in all departmental inquiries. He proposed that he might be demoted to draughtsman in BS-10. He was currently working as chief draughtsman in BS-18 and also holding additional charges of land management, master plan etc. The July 10 presentation of the DG shed light on the profiles of five other officials including Majid Khokhar, director P&DC.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2025