NAB arrests prime suspect in Rs1.37b corruption scandal

LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has arrested the absconding prime suspect Zakir Hussain in the Rs1.37 billion corruption scandal, ARY News reported on Thursday.

The NAB spokesperson said in a statement that the prime accused Zakir Hussain was involved in illegally transferring 250 kanals of land to him and other benami owners.

Hussain was also involved in preparing fake documents of the land of a popular housing society with the nexus of the finance department’s employees.

The accused was involved in transferring the citizens’ plots through fake documents and illegally sold 170 out of 250 kanals of land, the spokesperson added.

During the probe, the anti-corruption watchdog detected 80 kanals of land under the ownership of Zakir Hussain. The accused will be produced before an accountability court on Friday to seek his physical remand.

Earlier in the month, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) declared Khawaja Saad Rafique and his brother Khawaja Salman Rafique innocent in Paragon City case.

The NAB returned the reference against Khawaja brothers to the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) adding that no evidence of corruption found against them.

“Paragon Housing Society was approved by the Aziz Bhatti Town, not by the LDA,” NAB said in its report to the court. “The bureau not required to pursue the case further,” the bureau stated. “The case should be sent to the LDA, which have to redress complaints as regulator,” accountability watchdog said.

Accountability Judge Qamar uz Zaman directed the LDA to address complaints in Paragon Housing Society project adding that four affected persons remaining while all others have been given plots.