ISLAMABAD, Jan 20: The Auditor General of Pakistan and the defence ministry have once again locked horns over the use of military land.

According to audit observations, the ministry owes to the national exchequer Rs140 billion generated over the years by the commercial use of military land. On the other hand, defence ministry officials argue that the money could be used for troops’ welfare under the government policy on the use of ‘A1’ land.

When the issue came up on Thursday at the Public Accounts Committee’s meeting presided over by Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, tempers on both sides frayed and they exchanged barbs.

The PAC has been told repeatedly by the defence ministry over the past two years that the existing A1 land policy was not clear on the amount earned to be deposited in the exchequer.

Each time, the committee asked the authorities in the defence ministry to consult the government and remove the anomalies, but to no avail.

The caretaker government headed by prime minister Mohammedmian Soomro gave a legal cover to commercial use of A1 military land by the armed forces, but didn’t clarify it’s financial implications.

Over the years, all three branches of the armed forces have been using land in their possession for commercial activities by setting up all kinds of businesses, like shopping areas, petrol pumps, CNG stations, restaurants, marriage halls, joy lands, printing presses, ice factories, cattle markets, etc. Land has also been leased out for agriculture.

“The defence ministry officials don’t listen to us, appoint junior officers as members of the board which determines the amount of income earned from the use of a particular piece of land to be deposited to the national exchequer and keep a major chunk in the name of welfare fund,” a senior officer of the audit department said.

He said that in the past his department had challenged the setting up of such a board, but under the law, it could, and “we intend to do it in future”.

Defending his staff in the face of an aggressive top brass of the defence ministry, Auditor General of Pakistan Tanvir Ali Agha said it had been three years since the A1 policy had been approved by the government. “If it carried certain weaknesses, you people should have got it rectified.”

When Defence Secretary Lt-Gen (retd) Syed Athar Ali criticised audit officials and accused them of raising unnecessary objections, Mr Agha said: “We don’t bring an audit para before the PAC in a jiffy, but follow a set of certain procedures which include multiple meetings between the ministries concerned.”

Lt-Gen (retd) Athar said consolidated on A1 military lands could be provided in three to six months.

“We are not asking you to re-invent a wheel, but for some record which you people must be having in any form,” the auditor general said.

He said his department had no doubt over the integrity of the armed forces, but the job of auditing all government funds fell under its constitutional mandate.

When it was pointed out that Rs120 billion earned from the commercial use of the Fortress Stadium in Lahore had not been deposited, Lt-Gen Athar asked the auditor general to advice his staff to use some logic before raising such audit objections.

The secretary said 12 acres in the 66-acre stadium land were under commercial use. “Such kind of audit objections which are beyond my comprehension, send a wrong message to the masses about the armed forces.”

However, audit officials argued that the highlighted paragraph was based on the value of the land.

When Gen Athar remained non-committal on several directives issued by the PAC at its earlier meetings and said he could not give a timeframe for their implementation, independent MNA Saeed Ahmad Zafar said he would quit the committee “if the defence ministry’s officials act so indifferently to its directives, that indirectly meant disrespect to the members”.

It was decided that a joint committee of the audit department and the ministry would revisit all disputed audit paras.

The committee asked the defence secretary to consult the government as soon as possible on the policy for the use of A1 land and if an amendment was needed, carry it out immediately.

“Let there be no doubt in anybody’s mind about the committee’s authority and if the defence ministry’s bosses do not fix responsibility in cases of wrongdoings, then we will do it,” Chaudhry Nisar said.

He said it was the dirty work of a few martial law administrators because of which distortions had set in in the army as an institution.

He said it was the responsibility of “everyone of us to cleanse this institution of corruption”.