��������Ƶ

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government is reaching out to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to extradite real estate tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain, the co-accused and proclaimed offender in a land graft case involving former prime minister Imran Khan, on charges of building housing societies on lands he does not legally own, state-run media reported on Tuesday. 

Hussain, currently residing in the UAE, is one of Pakistan’s richest and most powerful businessmen and biggest private employers. He is known for being the chairman of Bahria Town Limited, which calls itself Asia’s largest private estate developer.

The development takes place after a Pakistani court last Friday sentenced Khan to 14 years in prison and his wife, Bushra Khan, to seven years in jail. Both were accused of receiving land as a gift from Hussain during Khan’s premiership from 2018 to 2022 in exchange for illegal favors. 

Khan says he and his wife were merely trustees and did not benefit from the land transaction. Hussain has also denied being involved in any wrongdoing related to the case. 

“The Government of Pakistan is reaching out to the Government of United Arab Emirates for the extradition of Malik Riaz through legal channels,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported. 

Radio Pakistan said Pakistan’s anti-corruption watchdog is conducting an inquiry against Hussain and his accomplices for fraud, deceptive practices and cheating the public at large.

It said the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has credible information that Hussain and his accomplices not only illegally possessed and occupied state-owned land but also land belonging to private persons in Karachi, Takht Parri, Rawalpindi and New Murree areas. 

The state broadcaster said Hussain is developing housing societies on these lands 
without obtaining regulatory permissions, accusing him of committing fraud against the state and public amounting to billions of rupees. 

It mentioned that Riaz has recently launched a project to construct luxury apartments in Dubai, warning the public against investing in it. 

“The general public at large is hereby advised and warned to refrain from investing in the stated project,” it said.

“If the general public at large invests in the stated project, their actions would tantamount to money laundering, for which they may face criminal and legal proceedings.”

Hussain has not responded to the latest allegations against him. However, in May 2024, the real estate tycoon took to social media platform X to condemn a raid by NAB at his company’s offices in Pakistan. 

Hussain vowed not to give in to “bullying.” The post, however, was a cryptic one as the real estate developer did not state specifically who was pressurizing him.