Workers welfare board: FIA seeks details of officers in corruption case

Inquiry has been initiated into alleged corruption by Sindh Workers Welfare Board officers

KARACHI: After the passage of nearly 12 years, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has sought details from the labour department regarding the alleged involvement of officers of Sindh Workers Welfare Board in corruption in 2004.

A letter has been written by sub-inspector Fahim Shaikh of FIA's Corporate Crime Circle to Sindh Workers Welfare Board secretary.  The name of a former director general, Zafar Salim, has also been included in the list of officers whose details are sought. Salim passed away a few years ago.

"FIA has approached the labour department after 12 years as this inquiry was initially conducted in 2004," said a source in the department. "Interestingly, this is a 12-year-old case and we do not even have the necessary details such as CNIC numbers and names of the suspects' fathers," the source added.

The letter states that the inquiry has been initiated following permission from the relevant authority regarding the alleged 'mega corruption' by the board's secretary Shehla Kashif in connivance with [late] Zafar Salim, engineering director Anisur Rehman and finance director Anwar Ausaf.

"In this connection, we request you to provide the complete particulars such as name, father's name, CNIC and contact numbers of all the officers [mentioned in the letter]," stated the letter. Furthermore, the letter has asked urgently for attested photocopies of the complete personal files of the officers.

Meanwhile, inquiry officer sub-inspector Fahim Shaikh and corporate crime circle's deputy director Kamran Ataullah were reluctant to comment when contacted.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19^th, 2016.