PTI chief skips ACE summons for third time

PTI Chairman Imran Khan has ignored the summons sent by the Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) for the third time in the Layyah land corruption case.

Two days ago, an ACE team had posted the summons notice at Imran's Zaman Park residence.

The ACE spokesperson maintained that despite being summoned for the third, the PTI chief did not appear before the body.

He said the former premier was summoned by ACE in the Layyah land corruption case on Thursday to know his version, adding that the purpose of inquiry was not to harass anyone but to dig out the facts.

Earlier, the PTI chief was summoned by ACE on June 19. In the first summons, he was asked to appear on June 16.

ACE had registered the Layyah land corruption case against Dr Uzma Khan, Imran’s sister, and her husband Ahad Majeed.

Dr Uzma is accused of alleged fraud in purchase of 5,261-kanal of land in Layyah district, reportedly worth billions of rupees, for a mere Rs130 million.

It was said that pressure was exerted on revenue officials from Bani Gala – Imran’s residence in Islamabad – for illegal transfer of land.

According to the spokesperson, the land was bought in 2021-22 through fraud, adding that Uzma and Majeed made a fake transfer of the land on their names. He said the marker value of the land was about Rs6 billion.

The purchase, he added, was made when the ADB announced aid for the Greater Thal Canal project, which aimed at irrigating the barren lands through Thal canal.

The spokesperson said Uzma had prior knowledge of the project, so the couple forced the landowner to sell it to them. He added that the landowners had filed complaints against Uzma and others to the police for forcibly buying the land.

The spokesperson maintained that the role of other officers and officials involved in the fraud would be investigated, stressing that their zero-tolerance policy against the corrupt elements would continue.

Meanwhile, Lahore police arrested Rabia Sultan, the wife of former Punjab governor Omar Sarfaraz Cheema, as she appeared for hearing in her husband's case at an anti-terrorism court on Thursday.

She was taken into custody for her alleged involvement in violence-related incidents on May 9.