Malik Riaz

Malik Riaz Hussain (Urdu, Punjabi: ملک ریاض حسین; born February 8, 1954) is a Pakistani real estate tycoon and philanthropist. He is the founder and chairman of Bahria Town, the largest private real estate company in Asia.^[1][2] Riaz is currently the 7th richest person in Pakistan, with an estimated wealth of ₨115.9 billion (US$1.1 billion) as of 2017 and is one of Pakistan's most prominent philanthropists.^[3][4]

Born in Sialkot into a wealthy family which went bankrupt during his adolescence. Riaz started his career as a clerk with a construction company in Rawalpindi. In the 1980s Riaz moved to become a contractor, and in 1995 was contracted to develop a gated community for Pakistan Navy. The contract was eventually terminated, but Riaz went on to develop Bahria Town Rawalpindi.^[5][6]

He expanded his real-estate company and developed gated communities in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad during the 2000s, developing a combined area of 45,000 square acres.^[7] As of 2016, Bahria has 60,000 employees, making it one of the largest private sector employers in Pakistan.^[8] Riaz is a controversial figure and has been subject of several corruption investigations.^[9][10][11]

Early life

Malik Riaz was born to a contractor who suffered heavy losses in business forcing Riaz to drop out of high school after completing his matriculation. He went on to work as a clerk with the Military Engineering Service and often working part-time as a painter. He later moved to become a low-key contractor in the military.^[12] According to Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa, Riaz learnt to ‘work the system’, according to Siddiqa, Riaz used his contacts to secure a contract with Pakistan Navy in mid-1990s to develop two housing schemes in outskirts of Rawalpindi. In 2000, Pakistan Navy transeffered its entire shareholding to Hussain and later fought a legal battle with Riaz over contract infringement which the Supreme Court ruled in Hussain’s favor.^[13][14]

Business

Malik Riaz has ambitiously expanded his business empire under the brand name of Bahria Town Group. Riaz is considered as a liberal in his business practises, according to Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa "to think that he is defined by religiosity and traditionalism, however, would be a mistake. His employees’ profiles show that he hires a lot of women, especially at the middle and senior management levels, because he finds them “hard-working, efficient and diligent”.'^[15]

Bahria Town has projects in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Murree and Karachi.^[16]

Controversies

Malik Riaz Hussain was approached by an intermediary of Arsalan Iftikhar Chaudhry, son of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, that he had inside information and a case and it can be resolved in his favour. Malik Riaz Hussain in an official deposition produced itemised list of how he bankrolled a playboy lifestyle for the son of the country's top judge. Arsalan Iftikhar Chaudhry had allegedly promised to influence his father's rulings.^[17]

Malik Riaz Hussain, the Chairman of Bahria Town Pvt. Ltd., has been at the center of some controversies and allegations. The allegations are mostly that he pays to get things done his way. An excerpt from pakistanherald.com states that "National Accountability Bureau (NAB) is currently looking into another application filed by a former military officer Lt-Col (retd) Tariq Kamal, which states that the land on which Bahria town is constructed, and is further expanding, was not acquired through legal means. It is alleged that Hussain has strong ties with Pakistan’s military which assisted him in building a huge empire. Some claims go as far as saying that a handful of the important serving army officers, bureaucrats and lawyers are practically on Hussian’s payroll."^[18]

In April 2016, his son Ahmed Ali Riaz was named in the Panama Papers.^[19]

References

External links

• Official website
• How the Arsalan Iftikhar case affected Bahria Town