The Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) has cleared Farah Khan of any illegality in the allotment of a 10-acre industrial plot in the Faisalabad Special Economic Zone to her company, saying she did not cause any damage to the treasury.
A report submitted by a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) claimed the allotment of the land did not show any negligence on the part of a government official and recommended the case be forwarded to the Special Economic Zone Authority for a departmental inquiry to determine if there were any irregularity in the land allotment.
Earlier this year, while the Punjab government was ruled by the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), ACE had registered a case of illegal allotment against Farah, who is a close aide of former first lady Bushra Bibi. The ruling coalition has repeatedly alleged that Farah served as a “front-man” for Bushra, and by extension former prime minister Imran Khan, but has yet to prove any of its charges.
According to local media, the order to dismiss the case against Farah was issued by the additional chief secretary of the Home Department after ACE Director General Rai Manzoor Nasir declared her innocent in the case. Nasir was appointed to the post of ACE chief after incumbent chief minister Parvez Elahi assumed office as head of a coalition comprising his Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid) and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.
Farah and her husband Ahsan Gujjar are still facing a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) inquiry over their alleged role in a money-laundering case. The ruling coalition had, earlier this year, announced plans to secure warrants for their repatriation to Pakistan from the U.A.E., where they have been in residence since Imran Khan was ousted through a vote of no-confidence.
In multiple media interviews, Farah and Ahsan have both maintained their innocence, claiming they are being targeted by the incumbent government in a bid to malign the former first lady and ousted prime minister.