KARACHI: The anti-corruption court has transferred the case of alleged corruption in the purchase of land for the Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway from the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in Karachi.
The NAB had filed an application on December 26th, stating that the case involved allegations of billions of dollars in corruption and that the ACE in Sindh did not have the jurisdiction to handle it.
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The NAB prosecutor, Jameel Khan, argued that the case was too big and complex for the ACE to handle and that the NAB had the necessary resources and expertise to investigate it properly.
On the other hand, the ACE argued that they had already recovered over $500 million and that their investigation was progressing well.
They also claimed that they had the necessary authority and jurisdiction to handle the case and that transferring it to the NAB would cause unnecessary delays and complications.
The ACE lawyer, Mazhar Siyal, presented evidence of the progress made in the investigation so far and argued that the ACE should be allowed to continue its work.
After hearing the arguments from both sides, the court reserved its decision, meaning that it did not announce a verdict at that time.
The case had been registered in November 2022 against several individuals, including a former deputy commissioner, for allegedly not following proper procedures and rules in the acquisition of land for the M6 Motorway project.
It is alleged that more than PKR 4 million was released by the National Highway Authority to the former deputy commissioner for the purchase of land, but that only PKR 2 million in cash was withdrawn, and no land was actually purchased.
The Sindh government had formed a three-member committee to investigate the alleged corruption, and the ACE had started its own investigation.
However, at the request of NAB, the anti-corruption court handed over the case to NAB Karachi.
Those accused in the case, including the former deputy commissioner, are currently in jail, and the case is now being handled by the NAB.
It is important to note that the outcome of the court’s decision and the further development of the case are yet to be announced.
