Citing blatant violations of WAPDA and PEPRA rules, Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) Javaid Jehangir has declared the contract given to a Chinese company for the construction of Diamer Bhasha Dam as ‘illegal’, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Wednesday.

Making further startling disclosures, the AGP writes in his report that the Chinese firm hired for the purpose does not even have Engineering Council’s licence, and that WAPDA has already banned its participation in any bidding in the future after it emerged that it had bypassed rules and regulations during the construction of another dam.

The report further reveals that the Chinese company even does not have experience of working on a water project.

Furthermore, as per the report, international companies were supposed to be invited to the bidding. “Truth of the matter is that advertisements were placed in local newspapers as well as websites to award contract for the Diamer Bhasha Dam’s construction,” AGP Jehangir writes.

The AGP’s report demands probe into open violations of rules and regulations in awarding the contract for the construction of the dam.