Mustafa Kamal, Iftikhar Qaimkhani indicted in illegal land allotment case

Former Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) director-general Iftikhar Qaimkhani, Fazalur Rehman, Mumtaz Haider, Nazir Zardari, Syed Nishat Ali, Mohammad Dawood, Mohammad Rafique, Mohammad Irfan and Mohammad Yaqoob are among the co-accused in the case.

All accused pleaded not guilty and said in the court that they will contest the charges against them in the reference.

The court issued notices to the witnesses of the accountability reference, and adjourned further hearing of the case till December 05.

Speaking to the journalists, PSP Chairman Mustafa Kamal called for devolution of powers and electoral reforms. He said local council elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa yet to be held, even 14 months passed after the previous local councils completed their tenure in the province.

In the reference, the NAB charged Mustafa Kamal and others of illegally allotting 137 plots on 5,500 acres of land near Sea View. He even gave permission to a private construction firm to construct a multi-storey building in the area, the bureau said in its chargesheet.

The land was leased out to hawkers and shopkeepers in 1980, NAB said, adding that it was leased out in 2005 to a private firm.