GUJRAT, Jan 9: A first glance at the palatial houses in the district cast a spell on people, who can't resist scratching their brains for coming up with a rough estimate of their costs.

However, one thing that most of the people know is that these houses are owned either by some leading industrialists or their owners (if they are not industrialists) must have got those constructed with "black money."

The answer is that more than 90 per cent of the posh housing units are owned by expatriates, who are settled abroad especially in the USA, the UK and other European countries, and have got the residences constructed to show the area people how wealthy and prosperous they are.

Apart from posh residences, the expatriates have built huge properties, including commercial units in city areas of Gujrat, and many of them have similar type of properties in Lahore and Islamabad. Moreover, they also possess luxury vehicles and their children study in reputed English-medium institutes such as the Beacon House School System.

It is beyond doubt that the status these people are enjoying is through the power of purse and that, too, foreign currency they had earned while working in different countries thanks to human-trafficking mafia which sent them to greener pastures through illegal means. Now the expatriates have dual nationalities and are well settled abroad.

According to information gathered by Dawn, most of the expatriates spend money on big politicians - MNAs and MPAs of Gujrat and Mandi Bahauddin among them - to be on friendly terms with them and enjoy social status.

They send invitations (return tickets) to politicians to visit foreign countries, hold functions in their honour and give their honourable guests costly gifts on their return.

It is also learnt that during election in Pakistan, they send huge amounts to their 'cronies' for canvassing. The well-to-do, besides maintaining terms with politicians, also try to develop relations with bureaucrats and offer same services to them abroad. On their arrival in Pakistan, they host luncheon and dinners in the honour of politicians and bureaucrats.

A resident of Chokar Klan village (Kharian tehsil), who went to the UK about 10 years ago and is now the owner of a leading restaurant there, had good relations with former premier Benazir Bhutto.

He succeeded in getting a ticket of a provincial assembly seat from her in the 2002 elections, but he could not contest due to a court decision against him. Everyone in Gujrat knew that he became closer to her and got the ticket through the power of purse.

Every expatriate from Gujrat, especially of Kharain (the richest tehsil of the country), is also desirous of getting publicity of his relations with politicians and bureaucrats and he often achieves it through coverage in local dailies. As many as 10 dailies are published from this district.

The trend among the local residents of going abroad is on the rise. At one time, the local passport office used to issue around 500 passports daily. But due to visa restrictions by foreign embassies, the locals don't mind contacting human traffickers.

They even sell their small houses and farmland or borrow money to go abroad through traffickers. Known human traffickers have accumulated huge assets in a short time. Interestingly, several newcomers have also jumped into the field.

According to a survey, there is a huge difference of rates charged by skilled and non-skilled smugglers for sending aspirants abroad. Poor residents, who do not afford high rates, often contact non-skilled traffickers and, resultantly, they are either offloaded from airports or caught by foreign law-enforcers for illegally crossing borders.

Two residents of Lalamusa told Dawn on the request of anonymity that they hired services of a non-specialist agent against Rs0.4 million each for moving to Spain last year.

The agent succeeded in getting Saudi visas for them through forged papers, but they were offloaded by immigration authorities at the Lahore airport. A case was registered against them and the agent, as they told his name to the FIA authorities.

They said the investigation officer got their remand from a court and they were severely beaten up by the officer and his subordinates. They alleged that the officer demanded Rs50,000 bribe to get themselves judicial, saying they went to the jail when they greased the palms of the officer and after some days a court released them on bail.

But, they alleged, that the FIA did not arrest the agent but helped him in confirmation of his bail after taking bribe. After confirmation of the bail, the agent refused to return their money and threatened them with dire consequences.

On their insistence, they said, the agent became angry and he along with his companions attacked their house and injured one of them and their cousin. They got registered a case against him with the area police station, but the agent got himself absolved of the charges by dint of money.

Thereafter, they said, they moved the LHC for rejection of his bail after which the accused returned half of their money before a local jury. But they said they suffered a loss of Rs0.6 million in total.