Web Desk: Investigators probing the Islamabad Cooperative Housing Society (ICHS) scandal have uncovered what officials describe as one of Pakistan’s largest housing frauds, involving the illegal issuance of tens of thousands of plot files far exceeding the society’s approved land holdings.
Officials familiar with investigations by National Accountability Bureau offices in Rawalpindi and Islamabad said the housing society was legally permitted to issue only around 6,000 plot files based on its approved layout plan and available land bank.
However, investigators allege that former office-bearers and facilitators issued nearly 42,000 plot files, creating a massive shortfall between available land and allocated plots.
According to investigators, nearly 36,000 plot files have so far been classified as illegal, excessive, or unsupported by available land, raising serious questions about alleged fraud, mismanagement, and abuse of authority spanning several years.
Authorities said preliminary findings also revealed that records for thousands of fully paid or allotted plot files were either missing or unavailable.
Investigators allege that many citizens were sold plot files for land that either did not exist, lacked legal approval, or was never properly documented.
Officials added that the large discrepancy between the society’s land bank and the number of issued files suggests that fake, duplicate, and excessive files were systematically sold to collect billions of rupees from the public.
Investigators have so far identified financial irregularities exceeding 16 billion Pakistani rupees, officials said. However, they cautioned that the figure could rise significantly as authorities continue reviewing records and tracing financial transactions linked to the case.
Meanwhile, National Accountability Bureau officials confirmed the arrest of seven suspects connected to the former management committee and a private land dealing company.
Those arrested include former secretary general Mehdi Khan Shakir, former treasurer Malik Muhammad Nawaz, former executive member Muhammad Arshad, and four individuals associated with Land Stock Dealing Point company: Munir Akhtar, Ali Mahmood, Yamin Malik, and Ghulam Jillani.
Separately, an accountability court in Islamabad granted the anti-graft agency seven days of physical remand for the suspects to allow further investigation, recovery of documentary evidence, tracing of financial transactions, and identification of additional alleged facilitators.
Officials familiar with the investigation said the case could expand further as teams examine the roles of other individuals linked to the society’s administration, land management, and financial affairs.
Several investigation teams are currently working on different aspects of the case, while authorities expect more arrests as the probe progresses.
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