The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has escalated its inquiry into alleged large-scale irregularities in the National Accountability Bureau–linked Lyari Expressway Resettlement Project, moving the case into a formal investigation stage.
According to official sources, the preliminary probe uncovered suspected illegal plot allotments, china cutting, and fake land allocations within the resettlement scheme. Authorities reportedly recovered thousands of plot files and related records during recent raids conducted as part of the investigation.
Investigators claim that nearly 65 percent of the seized documents contain allegedly fake allotment orders. Many of these records reportedly bear signatures attributed to assistant directors of land and executive engineers, raising concerns about possible involvement of government officials in the suspected fraud.
Officials have also placed six suspects, including government personnel, on the Passport Control List, restricting their travel abroad during the ongoing investigation.
The probe further alleges that around 20 acres of land linked to the project were fraudulently sold to outside individuals. Separately, investigators have recommended launching another inquiry into alleged irregularities worth approximately Rs. 8 billion connected to the scheme.
The Lyari Expressway Resettlement Project was initiated as a joint federal and provincial effort to rehabilitate nearly 250,000 residents displaced by the construction of the Lyari Expressway.
Launched in 2001, the project has remained under implementation for over two decades, with funding shared between the federal government (67%) and the Sindh government (33%).
