Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The powerful land mafia operating in the federal capital has deprived the employees of the Senate and National Assembly Secretariats of Rs 300 million, which they invested in a housing society.

Now a parliamentary committee has directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to investigate the matter and submit a report to the committee at the next meeting.

The National Assembly Standing Committee on House and Library, which met with its Chairman Murtaza Javed Abbasi in the chair at Parliament House on Tuesday, was informed that 3,000 registered members of the National Assembly Cooperative Housing Society were promised that they would be allotted plots in a certain sector in the federal capital. As many as 1,093 employees of the National Assembly and the Senate deposited Rs 850,000 each per kanal to the Federal Employees Cooperative Housing Society for allotment of plots, but they have not been allotted plots so far.

The Federal Employees Cooperative Housing Society president had earlier told the committee that 226 plots were ready to be handed over to the owners.

Discussing the issue at its July 26 meeting, the committee showed its anger at the lethargic attitude of the management of the housing society. According a report of an inter-department committee set up by the standing committee, only 50 of the 226 plots are ready to be handed over to the owners. The rest of the plots have not been developed so far; therefore, they cannot be handed over to the owners.

Abbasi showed his displeasure at the non-serious attitude of the housing society management and said that society President Col (Retd) Nazar-ul-Islam had assured the committee that all 1,093 plots would be handed over to the owners before December 30, 2015. However, on the society president’s request the committee extended this deadline to April 30. Abbasi said the society president failed to honour his commitment. Moreover, precious land of the society has been declared commercial and allotted to other people. It was also brought to the notice of the committee that allotment letters issued by the society management to the members were fake. Abbasi directed the NAB to investigate the matter and chalk out a plan to compensate those who paid for plots at the housing society.

The committee showed its displeasure with the absence of Capital Development Authority Chairman Maroof Afzal from the meeting and decided to submit a privilege motion against him.

National Assembly Members Malik Ibrar Ahmed, Sardar Mumtaz Khan, Mehboob Alam, Dr Mehreen Razzaq Bhutto, Shahida Rahmani and Major (Retd) Tahir Iqbal attended the standing committee meeting.