ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) raided Bahria Town’s office in Rawalpindi on Monday in connection with the Al-Qadir Trust University case.
According to the sources, the NAB officials conducted the raid to search for records related to Al-Qadir Trust University at Bahria Town’s Rawalpindi office. Punjab police and elite force teams were also present during the raid.
It is noteworthy that Al-Qadir Trust University is linked to a high-profile case involving the incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s £190 million National Crime Agency (NCA) settlement reference.
Reacting to the raid, Bahria Town Chairman Malik Riaz Hussain stated on X, formerly known as Twitter, that he would bear all hardships and not become “an approver.”
Sources also added that the anti-graft watchdog has launched an investigation into alleged irregularities against Bahria Town, specifically concerning land acquired for Bahria Enclave’s project, which was reportedly allocated for establishing a zoo.
What is the £190 million settlement case?
The PTI chairman is facing corruption charges involving billions of rupees in a case also involving the property tycoon. Khan, along with his wife Bushra Bibi and other PTI leaders, are under NAB investigation related to a settlement between the PTI government and the property tycoon, which allegedly caused a loss of £190 million to the national exchequer.
The charges state that Khan and other accused adjusted Rs50 billion — £190 million at the time — sent by Britain’s NCA to the Pakistani government as part of an agreement with the property tycoon. They are also accused of obtaining undue benefit in the form of over 458 kanals of land at Mouza Bakrala, Sohawa, to establish Al-Qadir University.
During the PTI government, the NCA seized assets worth £190 million from the property tycoon in Britain. The agency stated that the assets would be transferred to the government of Pakistan, and the settlement with the Pakistani property tycoon was a civil matter, not a finding of guilt.
Subsequently, then-Prime Minister Khan received cabinet approval for the settlement with the UK crime agency on December 3, 2019, without disclosing the details of the confidential agreement. It was decided that the money would be submitted to the Supreme Court on behalf of the tycoon.
Shortly after, the Al-Qadir Trust was established in Islamabad. Zulfi Bukhari, Babar Awan, Bushra Bibi, and her close friend Farah Khan were appointed as trustees. Two to three months after the cabinet’s approval, the property tycoon transferred 458 kanals of land to Bukhari, a close aide of the PTI chief, who later transferred it to the trust. Bukhari and Awan subsequently opted out as trustees, leaving the trust registered in the names of Khan, Bushra Bibi, and Farah.
NAB officials had been probing the alleged misuse of powers in the recovery process of the “dirty money” received from the UK crime agency.
