LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has dismissed the interim bail petitions of registry clerk Taj Muhammad and Registrar Mehboob Ali in a case involving six allegedly fake property registrations. During the hearing, Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court Justice Aalia Neelum expressed concern over the appointment of 40 percent of officers in the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) on deputation, observing that the practice should be discontinued to improve the department’s performance. The chief justice remarked that an examination of the record indicated apparent forgery and collusion. She observed that a single fraudulent property registration could dramatically alter the value of a property, while a large number of registration-related cases continued to cause difficulties for the public without an effective response from the relevant authorities. Following the court’s directions, Director General Anti-Corruption Sohail Zafar Chattha appeared before the court and informed it that new rules had been prepared and forwarded to the Punjab chief secretary. Justice Neelum also sought details of the steps taken to appoint special prosecutors in the Anti-Corruption Establishment. The director general informed the court that criminal law practitioners would be engaged to represent the department in cases. The chief justice observed that officers appointed on deputation often weaken cases and stressed that recruitment for prosecution positions should be carried out through a formal advertisement to ensure that qualified candidates are appointed on merit. The court further directed the director general to reconsider the proposals for amendments to the new rules. The proceedings focused on concerns over alleged fraudulent property registrations, the effectiveness of anti-corruption investigations and the need for merit-based appointments to strengthen prosecution and departmental performance.