Pakistan top court declines real estate giant's plea seeking to stay auction of properties
The development came a day after Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau (NAB) said it had auctioned three out of six properties, owned by Bahria Town and its founder Malik Riaz Hussain, saying the move was part of its efforts to recover 'defrauded funds' from a court-approved plea bargain tied to a £190 million settlement with Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA).
The auction was held after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) this week dismissed a petition by the firm against the planned auction of its properties by the anti-corruption watchdog. The six properties up for auction include one in Islamabad and five in Rawalpindi.
NAB said the sale aims to recover unpaid amounts from the settlement deal involving Hussain, the founder of Bahria Town who has spoken publicly for months about being pressured due to 'political motives' and facing financial losses as NAB opens cases against his property development projects across Pakistan.
'The decision on the stay order will not be one-sided. We will decide after hearing the other side,' Justice Aminuddin Khan, who headed a three-member Supreme Court bench, said during a hearing in Islamabad on Friday.
The six properties are among a total of eight real estate assets that Hussain previously handed over to NAB after entering a plea bargain with the watchdog.
'Now the accused says the plea bargain was not voluntary but made under pressure,' Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan noted, saying the real estate giant had filed a miscellaneous application, but its main appeals had not been fixed for hearing.
In the past, Hussain also requested the NAB chairman to cancel the plea bargain.
'After the application to cancel the plea bargain, the case has returned to its initial stage,' Justice Afghan said, adding the properties will be confiscated once the accused is convicted.
Farooq H Naik, the counsel representing Bahria Town, said the company's request to cancel the plea bargain arrangement and the NAB reference had both been pending before courts.
Of the six Bahria Town properties up for auction, one in Islamabad and two in Rawalpindi were sold, while three remained unsold due to a lack of qualifying bids, according to NAB.
Rubaish Marquee in Islamabad fetched Rs508 million ($1.78 million), Rs20 million above its reserve price. Conditional offers of Rs876 million and Rs881.5 million were received for two corporate offices in Rawalpindi.
'NAB remains committed to transparent recovery of public funds and strict enforcement of accountability laws,' the bureau said in a statement.
The sales are part of a widening crackdown on Hussain, once regarded as Pakistan's most influential businessman for his real estate ventures and connections with political, media and military elites.
In recent months, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar has accused Hussain and Bahria Town of involvement in laundering billions of rupees, allegations they have yet to address publicly. Hussain has previously said he is facing politically motivated pressure and financial losses due to multiple NAB cases.
The controversy is closely linked to the Al-Qadir Trust case, in which former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife were accused of receiving land from Hussain in exchange for favors. Khan, who denies wrongdoing, was sentenced in January to 14 years in prison over the case.
The UK's NCA said in 2019 that Hussain had agreed to hand over £190 million to settle a civil investigation into whether the funds were the proceeds of crime. The assets were to be returned to Pakistan, but prosecutors say Khan's government used the money to pay fines imposed on Hussain for illegal land acquisitions in Karachi.
Hussain, who has not appeared before NAB despite multiple summons, denies the allegations and says his property empire is on the brink of collapse. In a statement on social media platform X on Tuesday, he said Bahria Town's bank accounts had been frozen, vehicles seized, and dozens of employees detained, forcing operations to a near standstill.
Earlier this year, NAB warned the public against investing in Hussain's new real estate venture to build luxury apartments in Dubai.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
5 hours ago
- Arab News
US trade deal likely to bring huge investments to Pakistan, army chief tells overseas Pakistanis
KARACHI: Pakistan's recent trade deal with the United States (US) is expected to bring huge investments to the South Asian country, Pakistani military sources said on Sunday, citing Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir who is on a visit to the US. Field Marshal Munir has engaged with senior American military and political leadership during his ongoing visit, after years of strained relations mainly due to disagreements over counter‑terrorism issues. Pakistan eyes greater collaboration with the US under President Donald Trump and both nations have appeared to be keen to rebuild their military and economic relationship in recent months. On Sunday, the army chief met a group of overseas Pakistanis and spoke with them about his visits and a host of issues of national significance for Islamabad, according to Pakistani military sources. 'My second visit after a gap of just one and a half months marks a new dimension in Pakistan-US relations,' Field Marshal Munir was quoted as saying. 'The aim of these visits is to take the relationship on a constructive, sustainable and positive path. A possible trade deal with the US is expected to bring in huge investments.' Both countries last month reached a trade deal according to which the US will charge a 19 percent tariff on imports from Pakistan, compared to a 29 percent reciprocal tariff announced in April that had raised alarm in Islamabad. Separately, President Trump has highlighted a partnership with Pakistan to develop the country's oil reserves. Field Marshal Munir said the implementation of various Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the US, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and China was underway to promote economic cooperation and investment. 'Our progress and prosperity are linked to Pakistanis living around the world,' he said, adding the country's 64 percent young population has immense potential to build a promising future of the country. Under Trump's renewed outreach, Washington has praised Pakistan's leadership and reinstated military cooperation previously curtailed over Afghanistan-related concerns. Islamabad, in turn, seeks to balance its longstanding partnership with China, including arms supply and defense infrastructure, with growing engagement with the US. Pakistan's powerful military, which has ruled the country directly for nearly half of its history and holds sway in political matters even when not in power, plays a central role in shaping its foreign and security policies. This is the Pakistani army chief's second visit to the US since June, when Trump hosted him for an unprecedented lunch at the White House, signifying growing closeness between the two countries. Both leaders discussed the tensions in the Middle East, particularly the 12-day Iran-Israel military conflict. During his ongoing visit, Field Marshal Munir also attended the retirement ceremony of outgoing United States Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander General Michael E. Kurilla and witnessed the handover of command to Admiral Brad Cooper in Tampa, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military's media wing. Munir lauded General Kurilla's leadership and his contributions to strengthening bilateral military cooperation between Pakistan and the US. He extended his best wishes to Admiral Cooper, expressing confidence in continued collaboration to address shared security challenges. The Pakistani army chief also met US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Dan Caine and discussed with him matters of professional interest. 'On the sidelines, COAS (chief of army staff) interacted with Chiefs of Defense from friendly nations,' the ISPR said on Sunday, without mentioning the names of the countries.
Arab News
7 hours ago
- Arab News
Pakistan PM, Azerbaijan president discuss enhanced connectivity after peace deal with Armenia
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday held a telephonic conversation with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev and discussed with him enhanced regional connectivity after Baku's peace deal with Armenia, Sharif's office said. US President Donald Trump this week announced that Armenia and Azerbaijan had committed to a lasting peace after decades of conflict as he hosted the leaders of the South Caucasus rivals at a White House signing event. The development comes as Pakistan, slowly recovering from a macroeconomic crisis under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan, looks to capitalize on its geostrategic location to boost transit trade and foreign investment for a sustainable recovery. During their conversation, Sharif felicitated President Aliyev on the historic peace agreement with Armenia and said the end of the three decades-old conflict would usher in a new era of prosperity for the Caucuses. 'The prime minister particularly appreciated the role played by US President Donald Trump in facilitating this historic deal that would now bring peace and prosperity to the region,' Sharif's office said in a statement. 'While thanking the Prime Minister, President Aliyev said that peaceful development in the region would create new opportunities for enhanced connectivity between Pakistan and Central Asia.' Christian-majority Armenia and Muslim-majority Azerbaijan have feuded for decades over their border and the status of ethnic enclaves within each other's territories. The nations went to war twice over the disputed Karabakh region, which Azerbaijan recaptured from Armenian forces in a lightning 2023 offensive, sparking the exodus of more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians. Trump said at the White House event the two former Soviet republics 'are committing to stop all fighting forever, open up commerce, travel and diplomatic relations and respect each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity.' 'President Aliyev expressed deep appreciation for Pakistan's longstanding and consistent support to Azerbaijan on the Karabakh issue,' Sharif's office said. 'The prime minister responded that 'it has always been a matter of duty for the people of Pakistan to extend their support to their Azerbaijani brothers and sisters on this core issue and it was heartening to note that, under President Aliyev's bold leadership and statesmanship, peace had finally been established in this region'.' Both leaders expressed their satisfaction on the positive trajectory of their bilateral cooperation, according to the statement. The prime minister reiterated his invitation to President Aliyev to undertake an official visit to Pakistan soon. Both leaders are also expected to meet in Tianjin on the margins of an upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. Pakistan and Azerbaijan maintain close ties. In July, Sharif met with President Aliyev in Khankendi on the sidelines of the 17th Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) summit, where the two leaders agreed to boost bilateral trade and investment. This was Sharif's third visit to Azerbaijan in 2025. He last traveled to Baku in May as part of a broader push at economic diplomacy with the Central Asian republics, to whom Pakistan has offered access to its southern ports in Karachi and Gwadar. In July 2024, Azerbaijan announced a $2 billion investment in Pakistan during a visit by President Aliyev to Islamabad. In September last year, Pakistan signed a contract to supply JF-17 Block III fighter jets to Azerbaijan, marking the deepening of defense cooperation.
Arab News
8 hours ago
- Arab News
Activists urge environmental restoration projects as seawater threatens Pakistan's Indus delta
KARACHI: A leading rights group in Pakistan has said that seawater intrusion is triggering the collapse of villages and farmlands in the country's shrinking Indus delta, urging the federal and Sindh provincial governments to launch environmental restoration projects in the region. The downstream flow of water into the delta has decreased by 80 percent since the 1950s as a result of irrigation canals, hydropower dams and the impacts of climate change on glacial and snow melt, according to a 2018 study by the US-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Water. That has led to devastating seawater intrusion. The salinity of the water has risen by around 70 percent since 1990, making it impossible to grow crops and severely affecting the shrimp and crab populations and forcing communities to abandon their parched island. The Sindh Human Rights Defenders Network (SHRDN), which recently organized a visit of members of the civil society to the delta, described the delta situation as a 'slow-motion disaster' and called for urgent national and international action to save its environment and inhabitants. 'Release of 25–27 MAF (million acre-feet) water annually into the Indus Delta to push back seawater intrusion and encroachment,' the rights group stated in a set of recommendations for authorities to address the issue. 'Expansion of mangrove plantations and environmental restoration projects, with independent audits to ensure benefits reach local communities.' More than 1.2 million people have been displaced from the overall Indus delta region in the last two decades, according to a study published in March by the Jinnah Institute, a think tank led by a former Pakistani climate change minister Sherry Rehman. To combat the degradation of the Indus River Basin, the government and the United Nations launched the 'Living Indus Initiative' in 2021. The Sindh government is currently running its own mangrove restoration project, aiming to revive forests that serve as a natural barrier against saltwater intrusion. Chacha Ghani Katyar, a resident of Dandho Tar where the Indus meets the Arabian Sea, said the sea had swallowed 'vast tracts of land' after upstream dams choked off the delta's lifeline: the annual release of 25 MAF of freshwater promised under the 1991 Water Accord among Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces. Katyar called freshwater flows from recent floods 'a guest that will soon leave.' The SHRDN demanded federal and Sindh governments address the water flow issue to protect the delta's ecology and livelihoods.
