The Sub-Committee of the National Assembly's Standing Committee on Petroleum and Natural Resources on Tuesday submitted its finding on allotments of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) quotas, recommending the government to take persons and departments involved in it to task.
According to a report prepared by the sub-committee, was headed by Barjees Tahir of Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N), some 15 gas companies received quotas from Oil and Gas Development Companies (OGDCL). These companies included: Aftab Traders, Agha Gas, Balochistan Minerals, Bolan Gas, Cress LPG, Links International, Muhammadi Gas, Noor LPG, Petroleum Gas, Petrosin, Power Gas, Pro Gas, Ravi Gas and Synergy Gas. The report showed that allotment of illegal LPG quota had started during the regime of General Ziaul Haq in 1980s. The report also made it clear that paragraph number 6 and 8 related to three dignitaries were expunged from the report after facing sever pressure from PPP legislators Anayat Ali Shah and Nawab Ali Sawan in February 2011, who objected to the inclusion of former Premier Benazir Bhutto's name in the report.
According to the report, illegal quotas had been allotted to some 15 LPG companies, and OGDCL had committed irregularities while assigning it, adding that the issue of OGDCL officers' involvement was likely to be referred to the NAB for further action.
The committee took nearly three years preparing this report. The report said that LPG quotas were allotted to the said 15 LPG companies on the direction of the then government functionaries. Chaudhry Barjees Tahir of PML-N in his first report wrote that on the advice of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, the then Petroleum Minister Jahangir Badr allotted LPG quota to companies that did not obtain licenses and even their names were not mentioned in the summary of the petroleum ministry. Furthermore, these companies got quotas prior to applying for the allotment of LPG quotas. Similarly, Salim Saifullah had allotted LPG quotas illegally in 1996. Successive former governments filed cases against Benazir and Salim Saifullah in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), but NAB, which acquitted Benazir, yet cases were filed against Salim Saifullah were closed owing to imposition of National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO).
The LPG quota scandal report submitted in the NA body also showed that Sui Southern Gas Company Ltd (SSGCL) had inked agreements irregular pact with Jamshoro Joint Venture Limited (JJVL) and later gave extension to the JJVL, flouting the rules. Furthermore, names of Benazir Bhutto and Jahanagir Badr, which were included in the previous list of 2011, have now been omitted from the report on the objection of the ruling PPP's members of the National Assembly's Standing Committee on Petroleum and Natural Resources.
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