The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has seized records from the provincial Department of Minerals as part of an investigation into alleged financial irregularities in gold extraction contracts from riverbeds.
According to the NAB sources, gold is extracted from several locations, including Nizampur, the River Indus, Swabi, Kohistan and Kohat. A contract for gold extraction in Nizampur, valued at Rs6 billion, was allegedly awarded for only Rs4 billion.
The investigation centres on claims that contracts were granted at undervalued rates to favoured individuals, which caused losses to the public exchequer.
NAB officials have made it clear that relevant records have been taken into custody. Following scrutiny of the documents, individuals and officials involved are expected to be summoned for questioning.
