AMRAIZ KHAN
The Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Punjab on Saturday sought records of the development projects initiated during the tenures of Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and Usman Buzdar. The newly appointed AEC Punjab Director General Sohail Zafar Chatta seems in full action as he called all commissioners to appear before the establishment with records relating to the development projects in Ch Parvez’s era. Apart from this, the details of the development projects of the PTI era are also sought from them. According to the sources, in the first phase, the senior officers of the government departments who served in the Punjab government during the PTI and Parvez Elahi governments from 2018 to 2023 were called in the inquiry along with the records.
The ACE also issued a warning that any senior officer who does not cooperate with the anti-corruption records will be arrested.
According to the sources, ACE Punjab has also reopened an inquiry against Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rasheed. The department also reopened an inquiry into the Rawalpindi ring road scandal. In the second phase, former PTI and Ch Parvez Elahi cabinet ministers will be called for an inquiry, the sources added.
They said that inquiries and arrests are likely started next week. The sources said that the establishment ordered to arrest of corrupt officers and ex-ministers till March 15.
All the cases registered against Farrah Gogi in the anti-corruption department have also been reopened. ACE Punjab decided to postpone the LDA cases which are in the courts.
The sources said that the records of the departments of former minister Mian Mehmood-ul-Rashid, Cha Munis Elahi, Raja Basharat, Murad Ras, Dr Yasmin Rashid, and other ministers have been sought.
ACE Punjab officer Anwar Shah, who turned over the files, those who did not give his home address were suspended. Anwar Shah is an anti-corruption department officer who disappeared files from the department and is absconding. The anti-corruption establishment has also sought records of all housing societies across Punjab. The department intends to determine how many housing societies were given relief by former Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and Parvez Elahi in their eras.
