LAHORE, January 6: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Sunday directed Director General Anti-Corruption Department to seize the Khokhar Palace and present a report on the case within 10 days.
A bench led by the chief justice resumed hearing a suo motu case at the Lahore registry against illegal occupation of the properties of individuals by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz lawmaker Afzal Khokhar, MPA Saiful Malook Khokhar and Shafi Khokhar.
Chief Justice Saqib Nisar remarked that the land grabbing culture in Pakistan was introduced by the Khokhar brothers.
‘I won’t let this lawlessness prevail in Pakistan, we are breaking the nexus. The Khokhar Palace should be evicted. We can make an academic institution at the site,” he observed.
The top judge said that he knew very well what the Khokhar brothers would do with him after his retirement. He directed the anti-corruption department to register cases against the Khokhars.
Afzal Nadeem Khokhar on December 25 was arrested for building his home, Khokhar Palace, allegedly by taking illegal possession of 34 marla land of a citizen, Tariq Mahmood.
The anti-corruption department in its report before the Supreme Court said that the Khokhar brothers grabbed at least 40 kanal government land, adding that the accused made payments to only one person out of 10 others.
The report said that the Khokhar Palace is built on grabbed land, and both the co-accused have pre-arrest bails till the retirement date of the chief justice as they believe that no one would take action against them after CJ Nisar’s retirement.-Agencies
