ISLAMABAD – Housing societies near Ravi River witnessed massive flooding, and now authorities started cracdown against housing schemes over violation of rules and regulations, absence of requisite infrastructure as well as weak enforcement led to the massive devastation in private housing schemes.
Amid the crackdown, a former police constable Khushi Muhammad has been held by Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) for masterminding illegal Theme Park housing scheme on Ravi riverbed.
The sprawling project was reportedly built on 12,000 kanals of river land, was completely submerged during last week’s floods, exposing the fraud.
Anti Corruption officials said Khushi Muhammad sold residential plots to buyers without legal approval and failed to provide basic infrastructure, including a sewage system. Sources reveal he exploited legal loopholes to expand the scheme and transferred billions of rupees abroad.
Authorities now called on Ravi Urban Development Authority (RUDA) and Lahore Development Authority (LDA) to identify other illegal riverbed developments, warning that such violations will not be tolerated.
From enforcing law as constable to breaking it on a massive scale, Khushi Muhammad’s fall from grace has stunned residents and highlighted the risks of illegal housing schemes.
Recent floods caused extensive damage to private housing schemes and informal settlements. Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Authority (Ruda), responsible for the area, faced heat for approving projects in flood-prone zones without clearance from the Irrigation Department, unlike the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) and local tehsil administrations.
Officials argue that Ruda prioritized approving housing schemes over building essential flood-control infrastructure, including embankments and river training works. While Ruda claims ongoing projects and developer-built protections will reduce risks, affected residents, including those in ParkView Housing Society, continue to face losses.
Themepark Society among Shahdara housing schemes under floodwater
