PESHAWAR: The NAB final reference against Deputy Collector Athar Naveed has been submitted in the accountability court.
The Deputy Collector Athar Naveed has been accused in the scam of illegal clearance 488 containers of a single importer while three appraisers when Ather Naveed was deputy collector dry port Peshawar misused and cleared 701 illegal consignments. NAB has been investigating the scam which caused loss of Rs9 billion to customs exchequer.
The inquiry in to the scam was initiated at 2017 which was further converted to investigation upon revelation and chance for involvement of big fish. The investigation was referred by customs judge to NAB Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Earlier the Deputy Collected has got stay order against any forward motion of the case. The NAB can also issue arrest warrants of the deputy collector customs in big scam of corruption whose investigation is in final stages after which a full judgment will be announced by Peshawar High Court. The Customs Dry Port officials are under strict observation after the scam of corruption surfaced.
The sources at Dry Port Peshawar informed that further investigations will reveal that more corruption and bribery has been done at Dry Port Peshawar in time which the illegal consignments were cleared from Peshawar which basically were registered in Karachi and Lasbella.
The importer involved in corruption of clearing illegal consignments had been arrested along the customs agents who facilitated loss to the customs exchequer. The NAB also arrested Manager of JS Bank in this mega scam who extended the fake bank account to give benefits to the importer and corrupt practices to carry out illegal clearance of consignments. This scam not only occurred a low revenue collection but also has defamed the customs department.
The NAB in this scam has arrested three appraisers two customs agents and one importer along a bank manager at Karachi. The number of the people arrested might be increase if the case was processed in a right direction.
The transporters based in Peshawar called for strict actions against the corrupt practices and NAB also need to interrogate the container vehicles which brought the consignments from Karachi back to Peshawar for clearance. The transporters demanded of the body to keep eyes on those transporters who facilitate smuggling and bribery.
The scam which have merged to lime light not only learnt bad for customs dry port but also have increased the doubts in the minds of business community.
