One Constitution Avenue case: Nisar assures investors, flat owners of compensation

Interior minister says strict action would be taken against all officials and govt functionaries involved in the scam

ISLAMABAD: A day after the Islamabad High Court ruled that flats built and sold by BNP group in One Constitution Avenue were illegal, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has assured those who invested in the project and bought the flats that their money was safe and secure.

Nisar said that after reviewing the detailed judgment of IHC in this case, he had consulted with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and other key government officials and had decided to constitute a committee to devise a payback mechanism in consultation with flat owners and allottees.

The IHC had on Friday upheld Capital Development Authority (CDA) decision to cancel the lease of One Constitution Avenue noting that all parties involved including the civic agency, BNP group and the federal government had blatantly violated the law.



Moreover, the court had noted that neither the civic agency nor the government could justify its regulatory failure and negligence in allowing BNP to illegally sell flats on the property.

On Saturday, Nisar observed that unprecedented irregularities had taken place in the approval, construction and allotment process of the One Constitution Avenue.

On behalf of the government, the minister assured investors and flat owners of the security of their investments and swift compensation.



He also reminded that strict legal action would be taken against all those officials and government functionaries who were involved in this massive irregularity.

The minister further termed the one constitution building as the worst example of collusion between public officials, government functionaries and the private sector.

The construction and unabated sale of flats in the building, Nisar said, constituted a security hazard for the federal capital.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5^th, 2017.