MC chief, officials booked in Rs 21.5m corruption case

MULTAN, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 1st Apr, 2026) Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) has booked Metropolitan Corporation (MC) Chief Iqbal Khan along with several officials in an alleged corruption case involving over Rs21.5 million, officials confirmed on Wednesday.

According to the ACE, an FIR No. 05/2026 under Section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) was registered at the ACE Police Station on March 31 against the accused. Investigation Officer Ali Hassan Gillani told APP that the case pertains to alleged financial irregularities causing significant loss to the national exchequer.

He said that besides MC Chief Iqbal Khan, those nominated in the case include Municipal Officer Infrastructure (MOI) Abbas Sarwar Naqvi, SDO Abdul Hameed Qandarani, Sub-Engineers Hafeez Ullah and Khizar Khan, Superintendent Wasim Zaidi, and contractors Siddiq & Co and Lodhi Ahrar.

The complainant, M. Bashir, alleged that the accused officials were involved in embezzlement and misuse of funds in multiple development schemes, including Scheme No. 70 and 75 (2020) and Scheme No. 70 (2021).

According to details, an estimated amount of Rs14.6 million was allocated for installation of tuff tiles from Multan Public school to Jamia Mosque Muhammadi in Mouza Neelkot. Another project under Scheme No.

75 (2020), involving tile installation worth approximately Rs1.9 million from Pulyaat near Muzaffarabad Canal to Mouza Bhakri, also came under scrutiny.

That the situation is such that in January 2020, tender notice for 175 schemes was issued. Afterward, work orders were issued after the legal process on 06.02.2020. In 2021, tender notice for 177 schemes was issued, in which scheme number 70 also has fraud.

The complainant stated that according to the tender, scheme number 70, scheme number 75 of 2020-2021, scheme number 70 officers and contractors colluded and prepared fake and forged documents from 3 sessions and committed fraud, causing a loss of Rs 21.5 mln to the national treasury, Mr Hassan quoted from the FIR.

The complainant alleged that irregularities in execution and financial management of these schemes resulted in a cumulative loss of Rs 21.5 million to the public exchequer.

ACE authorities have initiated investigations, and further action will be taken in light of evidence collected during the probe.

Both parities will be called and heard during investigation, Mr Hassan said and added that normally the competent authority, Director Multan Region, Basharat Nabi approves the judicial action after the inquiry under which arrests are made.