Instead of facing departmental action, the officials of Sindh Small Industries Corporation (SSIC) found involved in a land scam by the provincial government have not only evaded action against them, but are also still enjoying lucrative posts in the organisation.
The Sindh government had found that three SSIC officials were involved in a scam involving a land at the Small Industrial Estate, Hyderabad (Extension) and another in Small Industrial Estate, Mithi.
According to sources, provincial Industries and Commerce Minister Rauf Siddiqui had pointed out the scam in 2009 during his visit to the site and formed a committee headed by Industries and Commerce Department’s then special secretary Zamir Ahmed Khan with Murli A Gangaramani and Shujauddin Abro as its other members. The body investigated the matter and held three senior SSIC officials – the then managing director Mehmood Ahmed Khan, the then director civil Mushtaque Ali Leghari and the then regional director, Hyderabad Mohammad Rafique – responsible for causing loss of millions of rupees to the provincial government.
The Small Industries Estate, Hyderabad (extension) was set up on an area of 50 acres at a cost of Rs 82.812 million. The Board of Revenue (BoR) had allotted the land in Deh Bora-Rai, Taluka Latifabad, Hyderabad with survey Nos. 164, 165, 172, 173 and 199.
The land was mutated in the name of the SSIC on October 17, 2006, but physical possession was not taken due to encroachments. However, after prolonged efforts, the possession was taken on April 5, 2007. Later, it came to light that the total area of land comes to 43 acres instead of 50 acres according to the city survey numbers.
A letter was forwarded to the Latifiabad mukhtiarkar on June 18, 2007 to re-measure the area of 50 acres as the corporation had already paid the full cost for it. The matter is still pending with the revenue authorities, the inquiry report stated.
The committee said in its report that Mehmood Ahmed, Mushtaque Ali Leghari and Mohammad Rafique were responsible for the seven acres that fell short despite full payment for 50 acres by the provincial government.
It was their duty to check and verify the measurement of land before taking over possession but they relied on statistics of the revenue authorities.
Furthermore, in case of the Small Industrial Estate, Mithi, the PC-I of the project was prepared on October 1, 2004 on an area of 50 acres at a rate of Rs 0.1 million per acre and the land rates were subsequently raised to Rs 0.2 million per acre.
Accordingly, Rs 10 million was provided by the Sindh Small Industries Corporation to the BoR through challans.
The inquiry officer summoned Mushtaq Ali Leghari, currently working as the deputy managing director of the SSIC and Mohammad Rafique along with the relevant record on December 3, 2009.
So far, no formal handing and taking over of the land has taken place. As per the statement of Rafique, the physical possession of 40 acres has been handed over to the SSIC by the BoR, but neither has the land been allotted, nor the name of SSIC entered in the Record of Rights.
On February 23, 2007, Rafique wrote a letter to the then director civil stating that “the possession of the land is being handed over to you but as the land has still not been allotted to you, therefore the allotment of the land for subject schemes as well as Small Industrial Estates, Mithi may be taken from the competent authority at the earliest, otherwise the construction work on the site can be stopped which may be noted”.
But no action was taken by the then director civil Leghari.
The report concluded that Ahmed and Leghari are responsible for the ‘wilful’ negligence and they did not take any interest in ensuring that the title of land was officially transferred in favour of the SSIC. It is also uncertain whether the physical possession taken by Mohammad Rafiq is of 40 acres or less.
According to sources, the inquiry report was forwarded to the Inquiries and Anti-Corruption Department for strict action against these officials, but somehow they have managed to settle down the matter.
