Senate body directs MoD to probe Airport land scam
By Ashgar Ali Mubarak

ISLAMABAD—The Senate Standing Committee on Defence & Defence Production, which met at the Parliament House Tuesday under the Chairmanship of Senator Nisar A. Memon, has directed the Ministry of Defence to submit a comprehensive report to the Committee on the alleged land scam in the New Islamabad Airport Project by December 10, 2007.
It also instructed that each and every aspect of land acquisition in connection with the construction of new Islamabad Airport be probed detail with a view to uncovering any wrong doing that my be committed in this connection.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chairman of the Committee said that the Government believes in transparency and the Committee would make sure that this project of national importance will be executed in a highly transparent and efficient manner. The Chairman directed the Ministry to attach all relevant documents with the inquiry report including the names of the land agents and their profiles alongwith the copy of land Acquisition Act.
The Minister of State for Defence informed the Senate Committee though the Rules of Business do not require the Ministry to take action on anonymous letters, yet the Ministry thought it expedient to constitute an inquiry committee to look into the whole affair as soon as the matter was reported in the national Press. He assured the Committee that every effort would be made to probe the matter impartially and to come out with a comprehensive report. He said it is the Ministry's policy to determine the facts of the cases relating to such complaints. He hoped that he would be in a position to brief the Senate Committee on the matter after submission of the inquiry committee's report.
It may be stated that a section of the national Press reported on 5th October, 2007 alleged malpractices in the purchase of land for construction of the New Islamabad International Airport (NIIA) by the Civil Aviation Authority (CIA).
The meeting was attended, among others, by Senators Mushahid Hussain Sayed, Naeem Hussain Chattha, Rukhsana Zuberi, Asif Jatoi, Syed Dilawar Abbas and Sardar Mehtab Khan besides the Minister of State for Defence, Secretary Defence and senior officials of the Ministry of Defence.