NAB arrests former Balochistan PSC chairman over allegations of corruption

Ashraf Magsi is accused of embezzling millions of rupees and illegal appointments of incompetent officials

QUETTA: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Monday arrested former Balochistan Public Services Commission chairman Ashraf Magsi, over allegations of illegal use of power during his tenure.

“The suspect is accused of illegally appointing several incompetent officials, including his three children, in government offices,” NAB Balochistan spokesperson Abdul Shakoor Khan told The Express Tribune.



“During his service, the accused also allegedly embezzled millions of rupees,” he added.

The development comes just three days after NAB Balochistan arrested the province’s financial secretary over corruption charges and subsequently recovered Rs730 million, jewellery worth nearly Rs40 million and a cache of foreign currencies from his residence.

The amount of cash seized was so large that NAB officials used teller machines to tally the exact sum till late evening. NAB officials confirmed the cash was found from a locker and 14 bags stuffed with local and foreign currencies. TV footage showed NAB functionaries removing the bags from Mushtaq Raisani’s residence.

In March, the accountability body had received Rs59 million from the former chairman of Balochistan Development Authority (BDA). Saadat Anwar and his facilitator Abdul Hakeem. Anwar were accused of misusing their authority and causing a huge loss to the national exchequer in a Doobandi Tuba Achakzai Road project in district Killa Abdullah of the province.



Following information about the alleged corrupt practices in the construction of the said project, NAB Balochistan conducted an inquiry and found that the connivance of BDA officials and contractors resulted in a loss of Rs196 million to the national exchequer.