Local Government Secretary Roshan Sheikh was arrested on Monday after the Sindh High Court rejected his bail plea in a case concerning the illegal allotment of land, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

The bail plea was filed Sheikh – who also served as the Karachi administrator – and nine others to escape arrest. He remained in the courtroom after its rejection for five hours to avoid the expected action.

However, the NAB official arrested him after a long wait outside the courtroom along with former Karachi administrator Fazl-ur-Rehman and Director Karachi Water Board Naseem.

During the hearing, the court observed that the accused were involved in the illegal land allotment and misused their powers as government officials.

The reference was filed back in October 2018 which concerns with leasing out/ allotting 265 acres of land located at Deh Ghangiaro in Malir, Karachi. A total of 16 people are nominated in the case.

It is said that the land in question was originally allotted to the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) in 1960 for setting up wool washing tanneries. However, the KMC officials illegally issued 276 leases for industrial purposes in connivance with a private person, Muhammad Shoaib. Various official recovered was recovered after NAB had arrested him.

According to the reference, five deputy directors of KMC had executed 276 lease deeds to private persons for industrial purposes without any allotment order after 2007.