By Ansar Abbasi

ISLAMABAD: In a display of blatant favouritism, the Punjab government during 2003-08 transferred hundreds of kanals of state-land worth billions of rupees to 62 individuals or parties at low prices following a cabinet decision but on the recommendation of the then chief minister.

The Punjab government has been asked by the Supreme Court to present before it on Wednesday (Dec 9th) the details of these cases along with the provincial government’s view whether these allotments were made in line with the law and the policy. These allotments pertain to only one category i.e. transfer through a treaty and do not include any case of leasing or allotment of land to civilian or military officials for housing and agriculture purposes.

Sources said that a committee constituted by the chief minister to review all these cases, met and concluded that all these allotments were made illegally and in violation of Article 173(5) of the Constitution of Pakistan, which specifically provides for the transfer of federal and provincial state land only through an act of parliament. The committee also found these allotments violating the Punjab Land Colonization Act 1912 and its rules, which only caters to tenants and lessees but do not include any provision of state-land’s transfer to any third party even by auction.

However, certain powerful members of the Punjab bureaucracy, who had played their role in these allotments, are trying to influence the concerned authorities to submit a goody-goody response before the apex court so as to save their skin.

The beneficiaries of the government’s largesse include bureaucrats, politicians, artists, businessmen etc, who were transferred these lands under private treaty on the cases initiated on the direction of the chief minister at a much less price. While the poor and needy in this country are dying even to get essential commodities like flour and sugar, the Punjab government made these allotments to influential people and those who had access to the chief minister.

The beneficiaries included former chief secretary Punjab Hafeez Akhtar Randhawa, American International School, United Foam Industries (pvt) Ltd, MNA Anwar Ali Cheema, MPA Aamir Sultan Cheema, Lt Col Farman Ali, Muzammil Enterprises Faisalabad, Ghareeb Wall Cement Chakwal, sons of ex-MPA Mian Tariq Mehmood, etc.

Those in the Punjab bureaucracy interested in justifying these allotments fear that if the Pandora’s box is opened before the apex court, it would expose many powerful and mighty in the Punjab bureaucracy. Some powerful former chief secretaries, some of whom are holding key positions in the federal government, ex-officials of the Board of Revenue, some even holding top positions in the present bureaucratic set-up under Shahbaz Sharif.

The defenders of these allotments are banking their argument on a cabinet decision of 2003, which says that on case to case basis, the state-land may be sold, if there is a demand, at market price plus 10% surcharge or the same land may be auctioned with district price assessment committee’s assessed market price as the base price.

However, what is noticed in all these cases of controversial allotment, is that firstly no auction was held and secondly invariably the market price assessed was realistic thus rendering the provision of 10% surcharge as useless.

The offices of the member colonies at the provincial price assessment committee level and district officer revenue (DOR) at the district price assessment committee level were mainly influenced to get these allotments made. The office of senior member Board of Revenue is also blamed for approving these questionable transfers.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has recently taken suo moto notice of these allotments and sought all the relevant record from the Punjab government after a case was referred to him involving a controversial allotment made to Muhammad Abu Bakar Aziz, said to be a close relative of the then dictator Musharraf’s staff officer. This allotment in question was processed and recommended by Javed Aslam, the then member colonies and presently additional chief secretary. The then chief minister had desired to “explore the possibility of making the land available through sale by private treaty” in favour of Bakar Aziz, who was allotted three kanals land in Faisalabad for Rs 500,000 per marla but a sitting MPA of the last assembly offered to buy the same land for Rs 1 million per marla. The case in 2007 was referred to the LHC but it was decided in favour of Abu Bakar Aziz after the official documents confirmed that the then secretary to the chief minister had verbally conveyed to the then additional advocate general concerned that the government would not defend the case.

Besides other cases, the controversial allotments include 2 kanal at Canal Bank for petrol pump to Syed Fayaz Ahmad; 7.4 kanals at Lahore Cantt to Mrs Ibrahim for construction of free dispensary; 15 kanals in Lahore for American International School; 2 kanals for commercial purpose at Shahpur Lahore City to United Foam Industries (Pvt) Limited; 18 kanals of land to MNA Anwar Ali Cheema and his son MPA Aamir Sultan Cheema; 31/2 kanals in Mandi Bahauddin for the installation of CNG pumps to Mrs Rizwana Ayub; 49 kanals in Mandi Bahauddin to Lt Col Farman Ali; 8 kanals for installation of petrol pump in Faisalabad to Muzammil Enterprises; 400 kanals in Chakwal to Ghareeb Wall Cement; 831 kanals and 16 marlas to lawyers colony, Bahawalpur; 64 kanals to Multan Electric Power Company; 45 kanals in Rawalpindi to NAB; 3.5 kanal to Sheikh Sultana of Dera Ghazi Khan for commercial purposes; 40 kanals to Hafeez Akhtar Randhawa etc.