An accountability court on Tuesday acquitted eight officers of the forest and irrigation departments involved in misappropriation of more than Rs 7 million from the national exchequer on basis of fake documents regarding canal side plantation in Bahawalnagar.
According to details, a reference had been filed against Bahawalnagar District Forest Officers Qazi Khalid and Saqib Mahmood, Irrigation Department Sub-Engineer Haroon Rasheed, Block Officer Maqsood Hussain Shah, forest guards Muhammad Rafique, Faiz Muhammad, Muhammad Riaz and Head Clerk Rafique Joyia on charges of misappropriation of Rs 7 million from funds of the forest department. The accused, who were posted at Bahawalnagar in 1996, prepared fake documents before handing over the charge of canal side plantation of Bahadar Wah and Najeeb Wah at Bahawalnagar.
In this way, the accused with active aid of each other embezzled the above-mentioned amount from the national exchequer. During the trial, the prosecution failed to prove the charges on which the court acquitted all the accused involved in the reference.
Separately, a judicial magistrate extended the physical remand of Muhammad Ashraf, Muhammad Anees and Shujauddin Zaidi involved in leaking of entrance test paper of the University of Engineering and Technology (UET) until August 4. Earlier, the anti-corruption establishment (ACE) presented the accused before court after completion of their four-day physical remand, seeking extension in the physical remand of the accused.
The court, while extending the remand, directed the ACE to complete investigation during this period. According to details, complainant Lieutenant Colonel (r) Farooq Ahmed registered a FIR at the Gujjarpura Police Station under Sections 409, criminal breach of trust by a public servant and 109, abetment, of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) against the aforementioned accused for allegedly leaking entry test papers of the UET.
Also on Tuesday, an accountability court extended the physical remand of Anwar Khan, father of Rana Mansoorul Haq, superintendent of police (SP), allegedly involved in the Canal Motors Scam until August 16. The accused has been arrested on charges of concealing crime proceeds in conveyance and abetment of main accused Rana Qaisar Nazir. Heavy banking transactions have been located in accounts of the principal accused, Rana Anwar and his firm Speedy Wheels.
The accused collected over Rs 1.2 billion by cheating the public at large through fraud, illegal and dishonest means with active connivance of each other and transferred the looted money into accounts of benamidars.
