BADIN: A joint investigation team has been constituted to carry out a forensic audit of more than 100 housing societies and schemes of this district as per the directive of Supreme Court, it is learnt on Sunday.

The apex court had issued the directive on a petition filed by a Karachi-based complainant.

The investigation team comprises officials of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE), the Badin deputy commissioner and and the district sub-registrar.

The team has been assigned the task of scrutinising the land record and carry out a forensic audit of the lands allotted to various housing societies and for residential and commercial schemes. It will also look into the illegalities in the formation of such societies.

It is learnt that more than 50 per cent of the around 100 housing schemes are not registered with the competent authority. Owners of 51 housing societies have not got their schemes’ maps/plans approved.

Many of the owners of these housing societies/schemes appeared to be elected representatives and other influential political figures. According to the complainant, the illegal practices to mint money from allottees had been resorted to by such people in connivance with unscrupulous revenue officials.

A preliminary investigation into the matter revealed that in many cases the lands being offered through the so-called housing schemes had been acquired as agricultural lands at very low rates and then offered to people as residential and commercial plots at very high rates. Housing societies have been set up for the very purpose.

Owners of many such schemes had made no arrangements for essential facilities like water, sewerage, electricity, park, mosques despite charging heavy amounts against such amenities.

Badin Deputy Commissioner Asif Jan Siddiqi told this reporter that the Additional Deputy Commissioner-I, Ali Nawaz Bhoat, being the focal person, was supervising the investigation.

In some cases, government lands and the spaces meant for roads have been grabbed and sold away.

A member of the team said that a district-wise list of societies under investigation was completed and would be put before the team’s meeting this week.

Published in Dawn, September 24th, 2018