PM's aide says 22 'illegal' properties retrieved.

ISLAMABAD -- Adviser to the Prime Minister on Accountability Mirza Shahzad Akbar on Thursday announced that the government had retrieved 22 'illegal' properties wroth over Rs200 billion owned by opposition leaders, mostly belonging to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

'The Qabza mafia (land grabbers) benefiting former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family members have also been arrested,' Mr Akbar said while speaking at a press conference here.

'The Sharifs have been deprived of monetary benefits they were taking from the Qabza mafia,' the adviser said.

He gave details of what he claimed billions of rupees' land 'illegally' occupied by the leaders of opposition parties, mainly in Punjab.

Shahzad Akbar says most properties were owned by PML-N lawmakers

The adviser quoted from a document details of the 'illegally occupied' land and properties. He said former MNA Malik Saif-ul-Malook and former MPA Muhammad Afzal Khokhar had been accused of illegally grabbing and fraudulently transferring over 1,025 kanals of state land and selling it to the Punjab Industrial Estates Development and Management Company (PIDMIC) on a very high price of Rs70.78 million. A case was registered against them in Lahore and the land had been retrieved, he said.

'They have also been accused of getting registered a surrender deed, instead of Rs1.82 million sale deed; getting registered 206 kanals of four-marla plots worth Rs2.25 million as surrender deed, which was totally illegal; 45 kanals of state land of Khokhar palace and surroundings worth Rs1.5 billion has been retrieved and 80 kanals, four-marla property worth R3 billion owned by Dinsha Jee was got transferred to the front man of accused namely Mubeen, Dawood and Afzal,' Mr Akbar said.

Mudasar Qayum Nahra, Azhar Qayum Nahra and Mazhar Qayum Nahra of the PML-N were accused of illegally occupying state land of 267 kanals worth Rs100 million which had been retrieved and Mudassar Nahra was arrested on Dec 18 last year.

Ghulam Dastagir Khan, father of former federal minister Khurram Dastagir Khan, was accused of illegally occupying state land measuring two kanals valuing Rs92 million on the main Grand Trunk Road and building a petrol pump/CNG station on it. He grabbed the commercial state land measuring one kanal, built a cinema worth Rs66 million. Rent of the land amounting Rs54.66 million will be recovered from Ghulam Dastgir Khan, who is said to be on pre-arrest bail, the adviser said.

Mr Akbar accused...