• PM Imran Khan submitted a preliminary report on the Rawalpindi Ring Road scam.
• The report exempts politicians accused of participating in the scam.
• DG ACE stated that cases concerning housing associations will be submitted to NAB.

Lahore/Islamabad: former Rawalpindi commissioner retired captain Mohamed Mahmoud and land acquisition commissioner Wasim Tabish were arrested by the Punjab Provincial Anti-Corruption Agency (ACE) for their involvement in the Rawalpindi Ring Road scam The arrest was announced by the organization’s director-general Goha Nafis on Wednesday.

Nafees told the media that the case was transferred to ACE on May 22, and his agency completed the investigation 15 days before the deadline.

“We checked over 21,000 pages and the previous government approved the alignment (project tracking) in 2018,” Nafees said. He said that the route was subsequently changed, forming the Attock Loop, and added that due to these changes, the construction cost of the project rose to Rs 40 billion.

DG stated that in March 2020, the construction company was instructed to change the course of the project. He said that this change resulted in an increase in road length from 22 kilometers to 68 kilometers.

“The chief minister of Punjab did not approve (change the course),” Nafis said of the investigation. He added that the project added a new overpass and had not obtained a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Capital Development Bureau and the National Highway Administration.

DG ACE explained that the land cannot be obtained until the route is finalized. He added that the purchase of 2.6 billion rupees worth of land without the approval of the new route caused the funds to be wasted.

Nafis said that the land in Rawalpindi was purchased at a lower price, while the land in Atok was purchased at a higher price. He added that the 2.1 billion rupees were used to purchase land in Attock.

The official stated that Mahmoud was suspected of abusing his power and Tabish was suspected of buying property worth tens of millions of rupees after corruption.

A survey Benami He added that Mahmoud’s assets are in progress.

Nafees said that some changes were made to the project in order to benefit the contractor, which exposed the link between bureaucracy and the property mafia.

He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan asked former commissioner Mahmoud about the route change, but Mahmoud “provided him with the wrong details.”

Nafees further stated that a benamidar account from the ship appeared during the investigation.

He added that violations were also found in ten housing associations.

He said that the main beneficiaries of the scandal were the housing associations involved in the project.

Nafees said that the newly formed association was purchased in March 2020, adding that many people rushed to buy land and set up associations.

He also added that the case concerning the housing association will be submitted to NAB.

Investigation report clears politics

On the other hand, the source said that a politician accused of participating in the scandal has been clarified in the preliminary report.

The source added that no members of the Federal Cabinet were found to be involved in the project.

Informed sources revealed Geographic News On Wednesday, DG ACE, together with PM Shahzad Akbar’s advisers, met with Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday and submitted his organization’s preliminary report on the scandal.

Officials said that during the meeting, the Prime Minister listened to a briefing by the ACE Director General on the report.

The source told Geographic News The report stated that the Punjab Anti-Corruption Agency (ACE) investigated more than 21,000 pages related to the project and recorded statements from nearly 100 people.

The report found that the loop’s route and rewards were illegal, and stated that ACE had filed a lawsuit against the deputy project director and other officials.

The report stated that the change in the route of the road was not approved by the Provincial Development Committee. It also stated that the project director’s claim to accept instructions from Usman Buzdar, Chief Minister of Punjab, was incorrect.

The report said that the project director and deputy director proposed five new interchanges for the housing association and pointed out that the project violated the prime minister’s instructions.

The report stated that the changes made in PC-1 increased the cost of the project by nearly Rs 10 billion.

Rawalpindi ring road scam earned 130 rupees in real estate transactions in four years: investigators

A preliminary investigation into the scam found that since its conception in 2017, real estate transactions as part of the Rawalpindi Ring Road project have exceeded 130 billion rupees.

According to the new official survey results, within the Rawalpindi/Attok Ring Road, Paswal Zigzag, GT Road and Islamabad Margalla Avenue, 18 politicians and 34 influential builders and real estate tycoons passed different The transaction obtained approximately 64,000 plots of land, news Report.

Once the Rawalpindi Ring Road project starts, the value of this land is expected to increase exponentially.

An inspection of the official records, files and preliminary investigation results of the investigators related to the project found that the 52 individuals had paid about 31 billion rupees to the real owners, directly or jointly through the front desk personnel, to acquire more than 63,828 plots of land . Allegedly, part of the land has been looted in the past four years.

Officials revealed that social and real estate tycoons sold approximately 320,000 documents/lots by generating an estimated Rs 131 billion from customers.

According to the publication’s news report, the distributor has not yet paid tax on 67% of land transactions, which is still 1.7 billion rupees. About 60% of associations and builders do not meet the basic registration criteria.

However, in informal discussions/interviews with more than a dozen senior officials of RDA, it was revealed that hundreds of thousands of land registries are being sold to investors and potential buyers who buy in bulk with a down payment of 10% to 30% in the market. CDA and Attock/Rawalpindi/ICT management.

Are government officials involved in real estate transactions on the Rawalpindi Ring Road?

Investigators also examined the possibility that more than a dozen government officials, including ministers, special assistants to the prime minister, MNA, senators, and MPA, may be involved in these real estate transactions.

If the project is implemented, they may be the direct or indirect beneficiaries of the new planned route.

“Some of them have either collectively inherited more than 17,110 plots of land, or they have recently purchased a large plot of land, which is obviously close to the jurisdiction of the Rawalpindi Ring Road to some extent. Some of them are already in the After the announcement of the Rawalpindi Ring Road project with ancestral land in the area concerned, other people appeared on the scene,” the publication reported.

The investigation found that as many as 18 housing associations and builders purchased more than 11,300 kanals plots of land in 9 mauzas. According to the survey, these are located in Moorat, Jungle, Raman, Ganda, Daulat Pur, Mehlu, Bango, Kanial and Qutbal, and are directly or indirectly connected to Attock Loop.

These builders and real estate tycoons paid about 1 billion rupees to the original owners of the land, but they themselves have gained more than 11 billion rupees from their customers by raising land prices in the past two years.

“About 10 housing associations have obtained more than 24,540 pieces of land. Therefore, according to preliminary findings, the real estate company has generated approximately Rs 50 crore after selling documents in the past four years, and therefore paid Rs 3 crore to the landowner,” the publication The report added that six housing associations have acquired 10,871 plots of land near the New Islamabad International Airport, GT Road, Paswal Zigzag and Margalla Avenue and generated approximately 35 billion rupees in income. The survey showed that out of 34 housing associations and construction companies, as many as 19 were not even registered.

The survey found that nearly 60% of society and builders used advertisements to show how close the society is to the Rawalpindi Ring Road project, thereby selling land ownership in batches.

Approximately 309 individuals and 11 companies have filed lawsuits against these real estate tycoons, and NAB has begun investigating 7 housing associations and 15 individuals. Allegedly, about 31 government officials and about 12 retired armed forces officers are also instigating those involved in these land transactions and drawing up the required Rawalpindi ring road route.

FIA, NAB, ACE investigate influential people involved in the Rawalpindi ring road scam

FBI, National Accountability Office and Punjab ACE investigators will investigate influential people who have been approved directly or indirectly by the new Rawalpindi Ring Road project route to obtain favorable road connections.

Investigators told reporters that the new road connection could benefit 34 parcels of land of former government influencers and their families in Islamabad’s C-15/16 zone, and benefit the surrounding area of ​​Atok in one way or another. Of 1,310 kanals plots of land. Geographic News.

According to official findings, the new alliance may benefit a former PML-N senator who owns more than 4,700 kanals in Fatehjang, Attock and Mauza Rajar. At the same time, two PPP MNAs own 2,460 parcels of land in Sangany, Islamabad, which is clearly the proposed jurisdiction for the Rawalpindi Ring Road project.

The investigation revealed that two federal ministers allegedly owned more than 1,531 pieces of land related to the project’s route in parts of the Fatehjang and Attock border. Investigators said that the son of a federal minister allegedly also owns shares in a private housing association, which has a firm foothold within Atok’s project jurisdiction.

Investigators found that another PML-N MNA owns more than 1,100 plots of land near roads in Fatehjang and other areas of Attock, while two PML-N MPAs own more than 1,400 plots of land in Attock, near the Rawalpindi ring road.

One PTI MNA and two PTI MPAs are also part of this group.

It is said that six PTI MPAs own hundreds of kanals in Qazi village, 4,000 kanals in Gaggan Tehsil Jand Attock, more than 600 kanals in Islamabad B-17 and Paswal, and 6 in Islamabad E-13. The kanals are based on investigations and several proposed connecting roads related to the Rawalpindi Ring Road.