Ahad Cheema (left), Shahbaz Sharif (centre) and Fawad Hasan Fawad (right). According to a January 16 National Accountability Bureau (NAB) notification, Opposition Leader Shahbaz Sharif is accused of ordering the cancellation of a contract given to successful bidder Chaudhry Latif and Sons for the Ashiana-i-Iqbal Housing Scheme, which led to the subsequent award of the contract to Lahore Casa Developers, a proxy group of Paragon City Private Limited, resulting in a loss of Rs193 million.
He is also accused of directing the Punjab Land Development Company to assign the Ashiana-i-Iqbal project to the Lahore Development Authority, which awarded the contract to Lahore Casa developers, causing a loss of Rs715m and the ultimate failure of the project.
NAB has also accused Shahbaz of directing the Punjab Land Development Company to award the consultancy services contract for the Ashiana-i-Iqbal project to Engineering Consultancy Services Punjab for Rs192m, while the actual cost was supposed to be Rs35m as quoted by Nespak, a renowned engineering consultancy.
The other key accused in the case include Fawad Hasan Fawad, the former principal secretary to the prime minister and a senior bureaucrat.
According to the National Accountability Bureau, Fawad, while serving as implementation secretary to the Punjab chief minister in the Ashiana-i-Iqbal Housing project, had misused his authority.
A NAB investigator had told Dawn that Fawad had issued illegal orders to the chief executive of the Punjab Land Development Company, Tahir Khursheed, to suspend the award of contract for the housing project to Chaudhry Latif and Sons.
The contract had been legally awarded to Chaudhry Latif and Sons but it was illegally suspended after eight months, the investigator had told Dawn.
An inquiry under the supervision of then finance secretary Tariq Bajwa to investigate the contract had declared the process legal and in the spirit of Public Procurement Regulatory Authority rules. However, Fawad allegedly shelved the inquiry report and did not inform the authorities about it.
Chaudhry Latif and Sons were given Rs70 million as a mobilisation advance and begun work on the project. The government later had to pay an additional Rs5.9m to the company due to the illegal suspension of the contract.
The NAB investigator had said that the illegal steps taken by Fawad had not only caused an inordinate delay in the execution of the project, but also resulted in a considerable project cost hike.
NAB has also arrested Ahad Khan Cheema, former director general of the Lahore Development Authority.
Cheema was heading two power companies in Punjab prior to his arrest. The grade-19 PAS officer is accused of misusing his authority to award the 14-billion-rupee contract to a favoured development firm.
In return, Cheema reportedly received 32 kanals of land which was then allegedly transferred to various members of his family, including his cousin and sister.
NAB claims the land was bought with over Rs30 million transferred in to the account of one Paragon Housing Society.
Othe people arrested in the case include Bilal Qidwani, Imtiaz Haider, Shahid Shafiq, Sardar Saeed and Arif Butt. Saeed and Butt are currently out on bail.
Timeline
Here's a timeline of Dawn stories about the Ashiana schemes.
2011
- Pain in the name of Ashiana
The Punjab housing department's 11-year-long efforts to design a housing scheme for the poor in Jhelum are hijacked by the 'populist' Ashiana Housing Scheme, robbing the department people of due credit.
2014
2015
- 60,000 applied for Ashiyana scheme: LDA
The Lahore Development Authority claims that as many as 60,000 people have so far applied for the allotment of apartments/flats in the Ashiyana Iqbal Housing Scheme.
2016
2017
July
- Ashiana Housing Scheme is home for some
The Ashiana Housing scheme becomes home for 11 families who start residing in their newly acquired homes. Keys were handed to 35 families of the 100-house scheme.
December
2018
January
- NAB summons Shahbaz over housing scheme inquiry - January 18,2018
Shahbaz Sharif, the then Punjab chief minister, is summoned by NAB for the first time for his involvement in the Ashiana Housing scheme case. He stands accused of cancelling the award of contract to a successful bidder and instead giving it to a favoured company.
February
March
- Ashiyana scheme: Court extends Ahad Cheema, Shahid Shafiq'sphysical remand by 15 days - March 05, 2018
Ahad Cheema and Bismillah Engineering Services proprietor/partner Shahid Shafiq, both of whom were arrested a month ago in connection with the Ashiana Housing scam, are physically remanded into police custody for a further 15 days.
- NAB gets wind of Cheema’s ‘share’ in another scheme - March 09,2018
Ahad Cheema's share in another housing scheme, reportedly worth 400 million, is discovered by NAB while probing the Ashiana Housing scam.
- NAB arrests two Punjab officials among four in Ashiana scam - March10, 2018
In a breakthrough in the Ashiana Housing probe, NAB arrests four suspects including two Punjab government officials, after they fail to clarify their position.
- NAB quizzes three secretaries in Saaf Pani and other projects -March 14, 2018
NAB questions three Punjab government secretaries over the affairs of the Punjab Saaf Pani Company in line with a probe into the 56 public-sector companies formed by the Shahbaz Sharif administration in Punjab.
- Absence of Ahad Cheema’s counsel offends LHC - March 27, 2018
Ahad Cheema fails to appear during the hearing of a petition against his arrest, causing great offense to the Lahore High Court.
- Two officials become approvers against Cheema - March 30,2018
An LDA engineer and a PLDC engineer allegedly become approvers against Ahad Cheema after recording their confessional statements with NAB.
April
May
June
July
August
- Saaf Pani, Ashiana scams: Officers in NAB custody ‘incriminate’Shahbaz - August 03, 2018
Former CEO of the Punjab Saaf Pani Company (PSPC) Wasim Ajmal accuses Shahbaz Sharif of making him (Ajmal) a scapegoat to save his son-in-law Imran Ali Yousaf in the PSPC scam.
- NAB detects Fawad’s properties worth billions - August 09,2018
NAB discovers that a multi-storey plaza in Rawalpindi worth billions belongs Fawad and his family members.
- Textile mills chief executive summoned in Fawad case - August 11,2018
NAB summons the CEO of a textile mill after discovering he has information/evidence which relates to an offence committed by Fawad in contravention to the provisions of NAO.
- LHC seeks NAB's reply over Fawad Hasan Fawad's petition against'wrongful arrest' - August 15, 2018
Fawad challenges his 'illegal' arrest in a petition to the LHC prompting the court to seek NAB's response in the matter.
- NAB summons Shahbaz today in three corruption cases - August 20,2018
NAB summons Shahbaz for his alleged involvement in three corruption cases namely, the Ashiana-i-Iqbal Housing Scheme, Punjab Power Development Company (PPDC) and the potable water project of the Punjab Saaf Pani Company (PSPC).
- Shahbaz appears before NAB investigators - August 21, 2018
Shahbaz appears before NAB officials and is 'given a tough time' as he provides details of the Ashiana-i-Iqbal Housing Scheme, Punjab Power Development Company (PPDC) and the potable water project of the Punjab Saaf Pani Company (PSPC).
September
October