Pak's federal agency arrests ex-Evacuee Trust Property Board chief over land 'fraud' case

Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested former chief of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader, Asif Akhtar Hashmi, in a land fraud case, local media reported.

"On Wednesday, an FIA anti-corruption team arrested ex-ETPB chairman Asif Hashmi for his direct involvement in misappropriating 13 kanals of prime urban land in Gujrat worth Rs 135 million," Dawn newspaper quoted a senior official as saying.

"Hashmi was also involved in 12 other cases of misappropriation of federal government land and embezzlement of public funds, and suspected to be involved in the laundering of crime proceeds locally and abroad," an official said, adding that a special team was conducting a detailed probe into the matter.

Hashmi is now being tried in 16 cases instituted by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and FIA. He had secured bail in 14 of these cases and was acquitted in one. The FIA arrested him in the 16th, a land case, Dawn newspaper reported.

According to the Pakistani newspaper, the accountability bureau had arrested Hashmi on his return from the UAE last year.

The PPP leader had been accused of misusing his authority and misappropriating public funds. NAB also accused him of selling 1,946 kanals of the board to the DHA at a throwaway price. In another reference, it accused him of making illegal investments worth Rs 1,870 million with a private company that caused a huge loss to the national exchequer, Dawn newspaper reported.

It further reported that Hashmi was recently acquitted in a case filed by the FIA on charges of distributing ETPB donations worth millions of rupees on personal choices. He had served as chairman of the ETPB from 2008 to 2013 in the former Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani tenure. He was considered 'very close' to the then prime minister.

( With inputs from ANI )