LAHORE: The chief of National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Lahore, has directed the investigation teams to expedite action against illegal housing schemes.

NAB Lahore Director General Muhammad Ahtram Dar held a monthly open court at the bureau’s provincial headquarters at Thokar Niaz Beg on Saturday.

He sought progress reports on illegal housing schemes from investigators within two weeks A large number of affectees of various illegal housing societies and fraudulent ponzi schemes attended the session and presented their grievances directly to the DG.

The victims of several major housing scandals, including the Prime Zone Scandal, Al-Rehman Garden Phase 4, Khayaban-e-Amin Housing Society, and Palm Vista Housing Scheme, were present. Complainants related to Grand Avenue Housing, Professional Cooperative Housing, New Lahore City, Omega Housing and Bin Alam Housing scandals also brought forward their grievances.

Mr Dar listened to the concerns of all complainants and reassured them of NAB’s commitment to ensuring justice and accountability.

He issued deadlines to the relevant investigation teams for making progress in all cases and emphasized the importance of delivering timely relief to the public.

He highlighted that the bureau was fully committed to safeguarding the rights of victims and ensuring recovery of their losses through lawful means. He said NAB would provide immediate and effective relief to the public.

Addressing the victims of the Prime Zone scam, the DG said a corruption reference had already been filed against the accused in the accountability court.

However, he said action was underway to repatriate the main accused back to Pakistan through Interpol. Five other suspects have been arrested and included in the reference.

In the Al-Rehman Garden Phase-4 case, he directed the investigation team to resolve the registration issues of all 77 victims within two weeks. For the Khayaban-e-Amin Housing Society case, it was revealed that plots had already been allotted to 550 out of the 700 complainants.

He instructed the investigation team to resolve the remaining complaints by May 10. Regarding the Omega Housing Society, the management was directed to refund the victims as per the NAB-approved refund policy. The investigation team was also instructed to ensure strict compliance with the implementation of this policy.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2025