The long-drawn-out controversy over the construction of two restaurants in University Town Club drew to a conclusion as the Peshawar High Court ordered that the premises be restored to its position of 2009.
The division bench of Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Asadullah Khan Chamkani issued the order on Tuesday while hearing the petition of Dr Fazl Muqeem Khelji. He challenged the construction of two restaurants in University Town Club, namely Deewan-e-Khas and Coffee Pot Café.
When the hearing resumed, Amir Javed, counsel for restaurant owners Faiz Rasool and Tariq Nawaz, told the court that the government had advertised for the mentioned projects in the newspaper on July 20, 2006.
He added an auction was held to renovate the swimming pool, gym, restaurant as well as the tennis and squash courts. Javed said construction was completed in 2012 but a petition was filed after which the status quo was maintained.
The counsel added his clients made a voluntary return to the National Accountability Bureau. That means the land would be returned but what would happen to the investment put into the construction of the restaurants, asked Javed.
Counsels for University Town Club, Tariq Afridi and Qazi Muhammad Anwer, told the court these constructions were illegal and the contract was awarded to ‘blue-eyed’ boys.
The court ordered the club be restored to its position of 2009. The bench told the two contractors that they would have to take up the matter of their investment with the provincial government.
On October 2, NAB sealed the Deewan-e-Khas restaurant on the premises of University Town Club. Some of the petitioners were aggrieved that 14 kanals of land earmarked for the ladies club was leased to two people for 33 years. They were also concerned that a coffee shop and restaurant were constructed illegally.
The high court passed judgments in 2009 and 2011, clearly prohibiting the allotment of plots for commercial buildings in University Town — a purely residential area.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 17th, 2014.
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