LDA sacks 2 officers for role in high-rises scam

LAHORE: The Lahore Development Authority (LDA) on Tuesday dismissed from service two top officers after a committee constituted to probe the illegal construction of high-rise buildings in the city found them guilty.

A senior LDA official told The Express Tribune that the officers Aftab Ahmed Khan, the chief metropolitan planner, and Qazi Masood Ahmed, the former chief town planner were among the 24 employees suspended by the LDA, on the committee’s directives, under the Punjab Employees’ Efficiency and Discipline Act of 2006.

The suspended employees included six officers, three officials, 14 building inspectors and an estate officer.

The officers were:

Aftab Ahmed Khan, the chief metropolitan planner, Chaudhry Muhammad Akram, the town planning director, Qazi Masood Ahmed, the former chief town planner, Khalid Mehmood Sheikh, the metropolitan planning director and deputy directors Shakil Anjum Minhas and Muhammad Fahim.

The suspended officials were:

Muhammad Iftikhar, Mehmood Ali and Asad Zaman. The suspended building inspectors were:

Irfan Suhail, Fayaz Zahoor, Tanveer Ashraf, Younas Dar, Akhtar Abid, Irfan Beg, Muhammad Faqir Ahmed, Shahid Nazir, Inamuddin, Shafiq Ahmed, Zia Hussain, Amjed Nazeer, Malik Tufail and Muhammad Fazil.

An estate officer of kachi abadies, Qazi Naimat, was also among suspended officials.

The LDA official said that the committee had recommended action against 33 employees. Of these, one has died, four have retired from service, and some have returned to their parent departments. The inquiry committee comprised Rashida Malik, Shafqat Ranjha and Haroon Ahmed, he said.

The committee had called for immediate production of details of these employees’s assets – including moveable and immovable property, bank accounts, prize bonds, income from rented houses, agricultural land, valuable gifts and the number of children studying abroad.

The LDA also registered FIR against its 33 building inspectors and officials with the Anti-Corruption Department, which arrested 11 officials of the City District Government of Lahore (CDGL) and the LDA. These officials were handed over to the Old Anarkali police station.

They were booked under Section 5/2/47 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1947 and Section 161 of the Pakistan Penal Code.

The arrested officers included Rana Maqbool, Tariq Mehmood Bajwa, Younas Dar, Ansar Imam Bokhari, Gharib Alam, Muhammad Jehangir, Shafqat Bhatti, Rana Muzzammil Haq, Col Abdul Majeed (r), Mutahir and Tahir Naveed.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 11^th, 2010.