ISLAMABAD: In a recent development, it has been revealed that the Capital Development Authority’s (CDA) Directorate of Land and Rehabilitation (L&R) has allotted more than 100 plots to estate affectees without following proper standard operating procedures (SOPs). Official documents obtained by Daily Dateline have exposed this illegal and questionable allotment of plots in Sector I-12 against the compensation provided to the affectees.
According to the disclosed document, the Director of L&R, Ms. Sidra Anwar, reportedly made these allotments manually based on instructions from Member Estate, Mr. Afnan Alam, and DG L&R, Mr. Umer Randhawa. It appears that the concerned officers and directorates either bypassed the computerized balloting process conducted by NADRA or were unaware of the prescribed procedures.
When contacted for comments, both Member Estate Afnan Alam and DG L&R Umer Randhawa claimed to have no knowledge of these large-scale illegal allotments. However, Member Estate Afnan Alam mentioned that the rules permit manual plot allotments by circumventing computerized balloting.
Director Sidra Anwar, on the other hand, was unavailable for comment despite multiple visits to her office. She refused to meet the reporter, despite being present in her CDA office.
In response to these revelations, Chairman of the authority, Mr. Noorul Amin Mengal, expressed his lack of awareness regarding these dubious or illegal allotments. However, he assured a transparent investigation into the matter. Sources suggest that the officers of CDA L&R have caused significant financial loss to the national treasury. It is worth noting that a 7 Marla plot is n Sector I-12 is estimated to be valued at around Rs. 15 million.
Not only did the L&R officers make manual allotments, but they also selectively allocated plots in prime locations using a “pick and choose” policy to benefit their acquaintances. Sources reveal that the L&R made these allotments by misinterpreting the Federal Ombudsman’s orders and Islamabad’s land disposal regulations.
Official documents indicate that the Director of Land, Sidra Anwar, initiated and proposed the doubtful allotment process, which was approved by the Member Estate. However, thousands of similarly affected individuals have been waiting for plot allotments for decades, but their cases have been ignored.
Below are the details of the recent questionable allotments:
Sr. Plot No Size Sector
1. 341-D1-C 35×60 I-12/3
2. 1960-DC 35×50 I-12/3
3. 341-H1 35×50 I-12/3
4. 341-H2-C 35×50 I-12/3
5. 1960-C 35×50 I-12/3
6. 1660-A 35×50 I-12-3
7. 338-O1 30×60 I-12/1
8. 2436-B 30×60 I-12/1
9. 2654-AC 30×60 I-12/1
10. 2642-AC 30×60 I-12/1
11. 338-ỐC 30×60 I-12/1
12. 2569-I 30×60 I-12/1
Recently, a land mafia, in collusion with the land directorate, has devised a new deceptive method to allocate prime plots by filing complaints before the Wafaqi Mohtasib (Federal Ombudsman). The Wafaqi Mohtasib, always intending to resolve matters on merit and in the interest of the public, has been passing orders in favor of the complainants.
According to the existing Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), all cases of allotment, whether accepted or rejected, must be finalized based on merit. In the case of rejected applications, it is mandatory to display the list of rejected cases on notice boards, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) website, or in prominent newspapers. This allows affected individuals to file replies or seek redressal for any objections raised by the department in their rejected cases. Additionally, the final list of successful allotments must be provided to the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) for transparent public balloting.
It is worth mentioning that the former chairman, Amir Ali Ahmed, and the member estate, Naveed Ilahi, had taken measures to curb the activities of the land mafia. They were focused on ensuring that after resolving similar legal disputes, allotments would be made through transparent NADRA e-balloting. This approach aimed to maintain fairness and transparency in the allotment process.
