NAB launches inquiries against ex-federal & provincial ministers, officials

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB), on Wednesday, launched corruption inquires and investigations against former federal and provincial ministers as well as government officials. The decision to launch corruption inquiries against former federal minister Ghulam Martaza Jatoi, former federal minister for narcotics control Khuda Bakhsh Rajar, and investigation against former provincial minister for food Sindh Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, officers/officials of Sindh Food Department was taken at the NAB Executive Board Meeting (EBM) presided over by the NAB Chairman former justice Javed Iqbal, an official said.

He said that Deputy Chairman NAB Hussain Asghar, Prosecutor General Accountability Syed Hussain Asghar, Director General Operations Zahir Shah, and other senior officers of the NAB also attended the meeting. The EBM also authorised filing of corruption reference against Muhammad Ramazan Sehato and others on the accusation of 95 alleged illegal recruitments in Education and Literacy Department, Naushero Feroze, Sindh by abusing the authority, which incurred losses of Rs160 million to the national exchequer.

The official said the anti-graft body okayed 16 inquiries against various personalities including officers/officials of the Sports, Works Department and others; Haji Khan Umrani, Abdul Jabbar Yousafzai and others, Khuda Bakhsh Nizamani, former member National Assembly, officers/officials of the Board of Revenue, Malir, Karachi and others, subsidy to 19 sugar mills (Mirpur Khas, Thatta, Khairpur, Sajawal and others), Peetam Dam, Superintendent Engineer, officers/officials and others, Bagharari Gaesh Circle, Kotri Barrage, Hyderabad Region; officers/officials of the Department of Law, Government of Sindh, Sohail Mansoor, Rehan Mansoor Khawaja, (alleged front man of Babar Ghori, former federal minister), and others. The bureau also launched inquires against Hassan Ali Sharif, private person (alleged front man of Mukesh Kumar Chawla, Waheed Sheikh, deputy director Excise and Taxation Department, Sindh) and others; Sadia Fatima Sikandar, Usman Sikandar, Iram Fatima Sikandar, Khalilur Rehman and others ,officers/officials of Revenue Department, Gothabad Scheme, Malir, Karachi; Management of Larkana Model Town Housing Scheme and Gulshan Mustafa Scheme and others; officers/officials of Mineral Department and Revenue Department, Sindh and others; consultants AA Associates; Messrs Sardar Ashraf D Baloch, contractor, Yousaf Ali , former member of construction company; Mukesh Kumar, General Manager Sindh South, NHA, Sukkur and the forum authorised conducting inquiries against Ayaz Memon, former project director, Riaz Ahmed Sehato, project director Finance Section, NHA. He said that the meeting decided to launch investigations against Syed Muzammil Shah, Executive Engineer, Provincial Highway Division, Sukkur and others.

The EBM authorised transferring the inquiries against Munir Ahmed, Naeem Khan, Sanam, and Sindh Development Organisation, and others to the Interior Ministry and the National Insurance Company, Limited and against others to the FIA for further proceedings.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021