By the collar: NAB handed extension in former FDMA DG’s physical custody

Arshad Khan behind bars for pocketing money meant for FATA affectees

PESHAWAR:

In a bid to further investigate the criminal charges levelled against former FATA Disaster Management Authority DG, National Accountability Bureau Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa filed a request with an accountability court for the extension of the detainee’s remand which was honoured on Saturday.

Arshad Khan who was serving as home and tribal affairs additional secretary at the time of his arrest, was produced before the court of judge Muhammad Asim Imam. The authority’s assistant director Irfanullah was also produced alongside Arshad. The court granted a 12-day extension in the remand.

NAB claims the officials were involved in embezzling funds worth Rs300 million, released as compensation for displaced tribespeople of Bajaur Agency. The bureau insists the money never fully trickled down to the intended recipients and was instead pocketed by Arshad and Irfanullah.

Under the Housing Uniform Assistance Subsidy Project, the federal government and USAID reimbursed those whose houses were damaged during the military offensive against militants in the agency. At least Rs0.4 million was allocated for those tribespeople whose houses were destroyed completely while Rs0.16 million was set aside for those whose houses were partially damaged. Overall, Rs2.5 billion was set aside for the people of Bajaur alone.

“In connivance with other officials, Irfanullah prepared hundreds of counterfeit survey forms of fake or ineligible affectees and included the names in the list of payments to misappropriate the funds,” read a statement issued by NAB.

It adds Arshad rubber-stamped all the forms and misled the Provincial Disaster Management Authority and Provincial Reconstruction, Rehabilitation & Settlement Authority.

Arshad was already in judicial custody of the bureau in another case of embezzling Rs60 million from the money issued for the affected population from Mohmand Agency – a major chunk of which has already been recovered. He was arrested on April 3 in the case and the Peshawar High Court has already dismissed his bail petition.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 30^th, 2015.