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ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Thursday arrested Capital Development Authority (CDA) Director General Afnan Alam in an illegal land allotment case after a lower court terminated his interim bail. Special court judge Sharukh Arjamand heard Afnan Alam’s bail case in the first information report registered by the FIA against CDA officials for illegal land allotment.
During the proceedings, the defense lawyer denied the allegations against his client, saying that he was not in the CDA in 2017 and was appointed as the Director General of Lands on 19 July 2021. He said that according to the FIR, the member state should have been investigated, while his client was not posted at that place. Petitioner Afnan Alam stated that he was not served with any notice nor was he summoned for investigation.
He said the FIA has declared the investigation closed. If that was the case, why did the agency request custody of the client. Afnan Alam could not go abroad without permission because he was a government official, he added. Afnan Alam said he was not part of the allotment process as only land voting took place during his tenure. In addition, the High Court has already granted bail to the co-accused. The petitioner said abuse of power is not a crime under corruption rules and prayed the court to confirm his bail saying he is innocent in the case.
The FIA prosecutor said the agency sought the custody of the accused as it wanted more investigations from him. The land applications were submitted in 2017 and processed in 2022 during Afnan Alam’s tenure. Around 62 plots were allotted illegally, he added. After hearing the arguments of the two parties, the court terminated the interim bail of DG Land CDA
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