Three highway officials booked for ‘corruption’

Millions of rupees allegedly withdrawn through bogus cheques

MULTAN:

Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) in Multan has booked three highway officials for alleged corruption.

Reportedly, the anti-corruption watchdog had registered three separate cases after the scandal emerged. Two First Information Reports (FIRs) were registered on Monday.

Sources privy to the matter told The Express Tribune that after two highway officials were booked by the ACE, more officials were found on suspicion of corruption.

Among these suspects was former district accounts officer Riaz Hiraj and former LAC Shamoon against whom a case had been registered.

In the first case registered by the anti-corruption watchdog, so far Rs110 million had been recovered from the arrested accused.

Sources added that the anti-corruption agencies had started raids to arrest the suspects.

As per the report, the signatures of former Punjab Highway LAC Abdul Ghani had been found on 26 cheques.

During the anti-corruption investigation, it came to light that patwari Mazhar and patwari Hayat posted in Punjab Highway Department had allegedly forged signatures of LACs and gave cheques worth hundreds of thousands of rupees to their close relatives and friends.

The money was then transferred to the relatives and friends of these suspects.

Similarly, the name of Sajid Nawaz Khokhar, who had served as a former administrator, had also come to light after he was nominated in the case.

In this regard, an FCPS doctor who was reportedly acquainted with patwari Mazhar was also nominated in the corruption case.

The accused appeared before the investigation team and claimed that the suspect Mazhar gave him a cheque saying that it was a deposit worth Rs1.8 million.

Similarly, a retired sub-inspector, who was also a named accused in the case, also appeared before the anti-corruption investigation team.

The sub-inspector had also blamed the patwaris Mazhar and Hayat.

Multan ACE had now registered two separate cases.

In the second case, millions of rupees were reportedly withdrawn from the exchequer between 2018 and 2019.

On the other hand, Rs140 million was withdrawn from the state exchequer during 2020.

A separate FIR had been registered by the anti-corruption watchdog.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 18^th, 2021.