ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary committee on Tuesday raised serious concerns regarding large-scale financial irregularities in the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and pointed to a pattern of fraudulent land transfers.
It said accountability measures had largely targeted junior officials while senior officers remained untouched.
The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament met to discuss audit paras of the CDA for the year 2023-24.
The audit observed that non-imposition of penalty following delayed completion and non-recovery from sponsors of private housing schemes had cost the exchequer Rs2.3 billion. The projects were supposed to be completed in three to six years. However, the auditor general’s office noted that schemes were not completed within due time as completion certificates were not issued from the year 2001-21.
Members were also surprised that sufficient action was not taken against officials for 43 fraudulent transfers of plots in different sectors causing a loss to the government amounting to Rs1 billion. The meeting noted with scepticism that Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had registered cases against 37 officials, including Grade 18 and 19 officers. The meeting was informed that none was behind bars and they had obtained bails from court.
CDA Chairman Mohammad Ali Randhawa did not provide names of the then chairmen despite repeated requests from members. Members were also shocked that documents/files of these 43 plots had also gone missing from the record room.
Besides the Rs859 million loss from mismanagement in land compensation payments, the members took exception to wasteful expenditures due to non-completion of work at Parliament Lodges despite lapse of 10 years, causing losses worth Rs823.65 million. Senator Saleem Mandviwala, who had also investigated the matter as former deputy chairman Senate, said, “There has been massive CDA mismanagement.”
Similar, financial irregularities were noted in unauthorised award of additional works through variation orders without open tendering resulting in loss of Rs491.22 million during construction of an intersection on 7th Avenue.
Members were extremely critical of the CDA after noting that the civic body had failed to pay back a loan (principal plus interest) due to financial indiscipline, causing a loss of Rs1.91 billion for Metropolitan Water Supply Project, Simly Dam, signed between the government and Overseas Economic Coordination Fund of Japan. This resulted in non-payment of the outstanding amount.
In his defence, Mr Randhawa said CDA was transitioning towards digitisation that would prevent fraudulent transactions in future. PML-N MNA Dr Tariq Fazal Chaurdhry defended him, urging the committee to support the CDA that had a future plan and had done commendable job in infrastructure development such as construction of flyovers and underpasses.
Published in Dawn, February 4th, 2026
