A scandal involving embezzlement of government assets worth millions of rupees has been unearthed as a turbine, transformer, doors and windows of a rest house constructed at a jail farm, known as the Manawan Rakh Chabheel Jail Farm, under supervision of the Punjab Prisons Department in the Manawa Area, have gone missing, a Pakistan Today investigation.
Local residents claimed that prisons department officials have also embezzled millions of rupees by selling fodder in the open market and depositing les money in accounts of the department. The investigation revealed that the prisons department has possession of over 54 acres of land located in the Manawan Area for decades. The prison department, with financial assistance of the government, turned the aforesaid land into a farmhouse located on outskirts of the provincial capital.
Land cultivated for jails? Prisons department officials used to get the land cultivated with help of prisoners, who had completed their sentences and were waiting for release. The department constructed a few barracks there and a rest house, which could be used as a sub-jail. The aforesaid farmhouse was under supervision of the Camp Jail administration directly from where they were getting vegetables in order to use for both the Camp Jail (District Jail) and the Central Jail Kot Lakhpat. Sources said the jail farm was meeting needs of two jails quite easily.
Who has acquistion? The problem started back in 2005 when the Punjab government allotted the land to the Punjab Sports Department for construction of the Lahore Stadium. The Lahore Stadium Project was later transformed into Sports City Complex by sports board officials. But the prison department never handed over the land to the sports board. According to Pakistan Today’s investigation, the land was in the sport’s board control from 2005 until 2009 but prisons department officials never handed it. According to sources, jail officials have also deputed private guards at the aforesaid place to stop the sports board from taking the land’s possession.
According to sources, prison department staff, including Riasat alias Taya, Ahmed Hassan and Allahditta, with the consent of top brass of the prisons department, have complete control of the land. Sources said that the staff operates with strong connections with local gangster Siddique Pehalwan and they cultivate fodder together and sell the crop in the open market for Rs 7 to 10 million. Sources said that the jail staff has not
deposited the money earned into prisons department accounts since at least six months, embezzling a minimum of Rs 10 million. According to sources, the staff has also sold the doors and windows of the rest house and now the rest house presents a deserted look. Sources said that the officials were also involved in cutting trees, which they later sold to different traders at good rates. Sources added that two fish farms have also turned into ponds due to negligence of the jail administration.
According to sources, a turbine installed at the said place for extraction of water worth around Rs 2.5 million has also gone missing, whereas, a separate transformer installed at the place has also been sold. Sources said that the Punjab government once again transferred the land in January to the sports board for starting the Sports City Complex but officials are still cultivating the land.
Tales of landgrabbing: Sources accused the officials of helping land grabbers in grabbing land of the sports board. Pakistan Today witnessed at least three to four 5 to 8 marla plots cordoned off with boundary walls within the farm area. 25 acres adjacent to the farm, in control of the sports board, have also been occupied by land grabbers.
A sports board official, seeking anonymity, said that only one of their officials was deputed at the jail farm back in 2005 until 2009, when the government transferred the jail farm’s land to them but jail officials never allowed them to take full control of the land.
Sports dept responsible: Camp Jail Head Clerk Munawar Ahmed, on behalf of Camp Jail Superintendent Gulzar Butt, told Pakistan Today that they have nothing to do with the land. He claimed that the items vanished from the farm between 2005 to 2009 when the land was in possession of the sports board. He accused the sports board of leaving the land barren. Gulzar said that since then they have cultivated only 3 acres twice for vegetables. He claimed that they have also sold fodder worth Rs 80,000. The superintendent also said that on January 3, the CJP had ordered the Punjab government to construct a jail at the said place.
