NAB freezes properties belonging to Malik Riaz’s son, Bahria Town, others

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has issued a 15-day freezing order on properties across the country, including those owned by property tycoon Malik Riaz’s son and his company, Bahria Town Pvt Ltd, in a reference against the influential magnate and others, it emerged on Saturday

The development adds on to NAB’s previous actions against Riaz, who is also an absconder in the £190 million Al Qadir Trust Case.

According to the order — dated June 19 and seen by Dawn.com — 457 immoveable properties belonging to various individuals and entities have been frozen under Section 12 (power to freeze property), read with Section 34A (delegation of powers) of the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO), 1999.

Referring to an investigation against “accused persons”, the order read: “It transpired that accused persons in active connivance with each other have usurped the government land admeasuring 16,896 acres situated in District Malir, Karachi,” stating that they violated Section 9A (the offence of corruption and corrupt practice) of the NAO.

According to the order, five properties owned by Bahria Town in DHA Rawalpindi; two properties owned by Ahmed Ali Riaz in Islamabad; and 18 properties owned by Bahria Town in Islamabad have been frozen, making a total of 25.

Two properties owned by Riaz’s son-in-law, Zain Malik, were also listed.

The order will remain in place for 15 days, though it will “continue to subsist until the accountability court adjudicates upon the same as held by the honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan in its judgment reported as 2019 SCMR 1106”, the document read.

Earlier this month, an accountability court on issued non-bailable warrants for the arrest of controversial property tycoon Malik Riaz, his son and others in the Bahria Town Karachi (BTK) land grab case.

NAB had filed a reference a few months ago against the owners of Bahria Town, senior PPP leaders and government officials for allegedly converting, exchanging, and transferring government land to Bahria Town for its BTK project.