TOBA TEK SINGH: The Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Faisalabad circle has formally initiated an inquiry into the alleged illegal cutting and sale of trees at Government College Women University Faisalabad (GCWUF) without holding a mandatory auction.

According to officials, ACE Circle Officer Rana Muhammad Arshad launched the inquiry after receiving a complaint from a citizen alleging financial misappropriation. University officials have been summoned on Dec 31 to record their statements regarding the allegations.

The complainant alleged that the university registrar, without constituting an auction committee and in collusion with other concerned GCWUF staff, illegally sold the cut trees, causing financial loss to the public exchequer.

In his application to the ACE director, the complainant pointed out that under Punjab Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rules, no property of a government institution can be sold or removed without conducting a proper auction.

encounter: A suspect was killed in an alleged encounter with Rajana police on Monday.

District police spokesperson Attaullah said a goat of a farmer at Chak 285/GB was stolen who complained to the police and the policemen went to the village to investigate. As soon as the police party reached there, a suspect, identified as Muhammad Ilyas Murad of Chak 232 RB Bawaywala, Faisalabad, was present in the house, adjacent to that of the goat owner.

As Ilyas was wanted in dozens of cases of robberies, narcotics and other crimes, he thought that the police had come to arrest him. He jumped over the wall into another house and opened fire on the police. The encounter continued for more than an hour. When the guns went silent, police found Ilyas dead and his two accomplices had escaped through the crops.

The spokesperson, just like in all stories of alleged encounters, said Ilyas had died as a result of firing by his two accomplices.

Published in Dawn, December 30th, 2025