KARACHI: The Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Mirpurkhas Zone has recommended the initiation of an open inquiry against officers of the Revenue Department in district Mirpurkhas for allegedly manipulating land records and unlawfully mutating entries of valuable private properties.
According to official correspondence accessed by The News, the case was initiated on a complaint filed by a Karachi-based woman, Rubina Khowaja. She alleged that several revenue officials of district Mirpurkhas — including Mukhtiarkar Rashid Meo, former PA to DC Mirpurkhas Khalid Khan, Tapedar Altaf Panhwar, and others — colluded to illegally mutate records of her three plots in Deh-109, Taluka Hussain Bux Mari, by forging entries and reducing the actual area mentioned in the official land documents. An internal verification report, submitted by Sub-Inspector Abid Ali Baloch of the ACE Mirpurkhas Zone, stated that the complainant had provided copies of the original land papers, which reportedly confirmed manipulation. The inquiry officer observed that “the relevant record has been forged and kept off the record, while illegal mutations were made in favour of others”.
During the verification process, the ACE issued letters on October 21, 2025, to the deputy commissioner Mirpurkhas and the sub-registrar Mirpurkhas, directing the revenue officials concerned to appear and produce the relevant land record. However, the inquiry report noted that the accused officials — including AC Saud, Mukhtiarkar Rashid Meo, and Khalid Khan, former PA to the DC Mirpurkhas — “intentionally and deliberately avoided joining the verification” and failed to provide any documents or statements.
The inquiry officer remarked that “non-production of record also gives substance to the allegations of the applicant.” Copies of the notices issued to the officers have been annexed with the preliminary verification, but the ACE noted that no replies or justifications were received despite formal intimation. The officer’s report concluded that the allegations involve serious manipulation of public records and therefore require a formal open inquiry to identify the responsible officials, record their statements, and retrieve the original revenue documents for forensic comparison.
The report further recommended that the matter be immediately converted into an open inquiry and placed before the competent authority for approval, issuance of warrants, and recording of statements of the accused officials, so that individual responsibility could be determined in accordance with ACE rules.
The ACE has proposed that the case be forwarded to ACC-II Mirpurkhas for formal approval of an open inquiry against the revenue officers and others allegedly involved in record tampering.
If the proposed open inquiry is approved, the ACE will be empowered to summon the revenue officials under statutory powers, seize the original record, and proceed with criminal accountability under the Sindh Anti-Corruption laws.
Official records also indicate that the land entries were fraudulently altered at the Mukhtiarkar and Assistant Commissioner levels. However, the database of the Land Administration Revenue and Revenue Management System the official custodian of all property records in Sindh reflected the original ownership in the name of the complainant, Mrs Khowaja, thereby confirming the forgery.
Khalid Khan, former PA to the DC Mirpurkhas, told The News that he had never served in Taluka Hussain Bux Mari and had no knowledge or involvement in the land record of the property owned by Mrs Khowaja. He added that, as per law and SOPs, the custody and maintenance of land records fall under the jurisdiction of the area of Mukhtiarkar.
Mukhtiarkar told The News that if Mrs Khowaja had any grievances regarding alleged forgery of land records in his jurisdiction, she should have first approached him. He added that any person involved in land record manipulation or forgery should be punished according to the law.
Assistant Commissioner Saud bin Munam of Taluka Hussain Bux Mari told The News that besides the ACE inquiry, he had also initiated a departmental inquiry on the directions of the deputy commissioner Mirpurkhas. He assured that “no one, irrespective of their post or position, will be spared if found involved in the manipulation of land records”.
Rafiq Memon, director ACE Mirpurkhas Zone, confirmed the development and said the inquiry process had begun and was currently in its initial stage. “Once permission for the open inquiry is granted, the law will take its course,” he said, adding that Mrs Khowaja had named Mukhtiarkar, two Tapedars, and other officials from the Deputy Commissioner and Assistant Commissioner Offices of Mirpurkhas in her complaint.
