Daily Times

KARACHI: National Accountability Bureau Karachi has started investigation into the conversion of eleven residential plots on ‘non-declared roads’ for commercial status.

Assistant Director NAB Hassan Noor has initiated probe into the involvement of Manzoor Ahmad Kaka and Mumtaz Haider, former director generals of Sindh Building Control Authority for giving these approvals; Seven other officials of Karachi Development Authority, Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, Karachi Water and Sewerage Board and SBCA members are also under investigation on ‘Change of Land Committee’ having the authority of changing the status of these plots.

NAB has collected all relevant documents, files and papers of these illegally converted plots from the concerned civic departments.

Kaka has already been facing two NAB corruption inquiries of Rs 50 billion pending since last four years and he has been absconding for over two years. NAB would likely to include Agha Masood DG SBCA in the inquiry along with other officials of the Authority.

Earlier Master Plan Department of SBCA during the period of 2012-15 had rejected the respective applicants of plot 173-C Block-2 PECHS, 40′ Road, plot 157-M Block-2 PECHS, all adjacent to Tariq road ; plot G-19/1 Block-9 Clifton, 50′ Road, plot 2/12 Block-4/F Nazimabad, 60′ Road, plot D-30 Block-8 Clifton, 50′ Road, plot C-96 Block-12 Gulistan-e-Jauhar, 40′ Road, plot 25 Gulnab Housing CHS, Scheme-33, 30′ Road, plot 232/C-2 Block-2 PECHS, 40′ Road, plot C-39 Block-4 Clifton, 50′ Road, plot 177-Z Block-2 PECHS, 40′ Road, plot R-143 Rafi Garden, Malir, 24′ Road and plot 156-N Block-2 PECHS, 40′ Road by declaring that these plots come under restricted roads for commercialisation.

It is pertinent here to mention that
under a notification, SO/L&C/HTP/SBCA/12-14/2013, November 6, 2013 by Secretary, Local Government Department Sindh, Qaim Ali Shah the then Chief Minister Sindh had assigned all administrative, financial and technical control of Master Plan Department of KMC to the command and control of Director General, SBCA regarding all affairs of said department.

The most interesting feature took place when Sindh Assembly passed SBCA Amendment Bill on February 2nd , 2014 and a gazette notification in this effect was issued on March 20th , 2014 under the Act that Authority could draw up master plans for all districts in Karachi.

Despite the facts that objection by secretary, commercialisation Master Plan, Shehri complaints regarding change of land use and objections by civic departments and civil society members, the Committee decided non-declared commercial strips, low commercial meant for petrol pump and change of land use of amalgamated plots to high commercial status.

Later in this connection, no objection certificates for change of land use from residential to commercial had been issued to the owners conditionally and subject to payment of relevant dues, if any, and clearance from relevant authorities besides in case of any misinterpretation of facts, found at a later stage, approvals can be withdrawn without any notice.

The game changers-members of Committee under the directions of former DGs of SBCA, politicians, party members and relations of ruling party, media persons and bureaucrats issued no objection certificates to respective owners of these plots.

Mumtaz Haider the then senior Director, MPD SBCA, IftikharAhmad Khan, former Director Master Plan, Zarin Fawad Hussain, Add Director and member Secretary Committee, MPD SBCA, Ali Ghufran, Director Town Planner, representative of Director General SBCA Auqeer Ali Superintending Engineer Water Board, Shamsuddin Bhutto, Executive Engineer, representative of Director General Technical Service KMC, Najam-uz-Zaman, Director Land-I KDA-wing KMC, Mohammad Shahid, Executive Director Legal and Principal Law officer SBCA were the members of the Committee.

Published in Daily Times, August 10^th 2017.