The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has recovered 235,622 kanals of Pakistan Railways land worth Rs6.78 trillion from Punjab and Sindh, while identifying another 225,000 acres of railway land, it was reported on Monday.
The chairman Lieutenant General (retd) Nazir Ahmed accompanied by NAB’s Director General Operations Amjad Aulakh and the Director General of Pakistan Railways, shared details of recoveries made from July to September during a briefing to journalists in Islamabad.
NAB officials said the recovered assets could potentially finance the Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway project if sold by the government. The bureau also reported recovering forest land worth Rs1.712 trillion in Balochistan and government land worth Rs563 billion in Lahore.
According to the DG Operations, NAB recovered $41 billion between March 2023 and December 2025, while Rs207 billion recovered in public fraud cases was returned to victims. The bureau reported recoveries worth Rs2.962 trillion in the first quarter of 2026, Rs2.425 trillion in the second quarter and Rs9.18 trillion in the third quarter.
Chairman NAB said recovering public assets, protecting citizens from fraud and investigating money laundering remained key priorities. He said land encroachment had persisted since 1947 and that the bureau was using verified land records to pursue cases, without targeting any particular government.
He added that NAB prioritized recovering public money before filing references and making arrests, stressing that suspects would be held accountable regardless of their status. He also said cases involving the current government were already open, although details had not been publicized.
The chairman announced action against irregularities in the power sector, saying cases had been initiated at the federal level. He said NAB would not negotiate further on tariffs and would also examine irregularities in mines and minerals and Auqaf departments.
NAB has also formed a committee to address investors’ complaints about inadequate protection. The chairman called for reducing the existing Rs500 million threshold for NAB action, saying the change would strengthen the bureau’s powers.
On money laundering, he criticized the lack of cooperation from some foreign countries in responding to Pakistan’s requests for information. He also invited property tycoon Malik Riaz to return to Pakistan and face the cases against him.
