UoP botanical garden case: PHC summons ex-CM in lease cancellation case

Court seeks explanation of transfer of land to private universities

PESHAWAR: Peshawar High court has summoned Defence Minister Pervez Khattak in University of Peshawar (UoP) botanical garden case with a warning that if he fails to appear in person, he will be charged with contempt of court.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Qaiser Rasheed and Justice Muhammad Auyb resumed on Wednesday the hearing of the Peshawar University botanical garden case here on Wednesday.

UoP was awarded a 99-year lease for establishing a botanical garden in the Azakhel area of Nowshera district. However, in 2014 this lease was cancelled by district administration on the directive of the then Chief Minister Pervez Khattak.

Khattak had ordered the handing over of around 500 kanals of the botanical garden’s land for the setting up of two private sector universities, Air University and Technical University.

The UoP lawyer Waseem Uddin Khattak told the court that Khattak in his capacity as the CM had cancelled the lease in spite of the fact that it had legal protection from the court, which clearly asked the district administration not to cancel the lease.

But the then chief minister’s bother who is now member of the provincial assembly, Liaquat Khattak, ignoring the high court’s order cancelled the UoP lease and awarded it to the private universities.

While hearing the case Justice Qaiser Rashed said that how could chief minister cancel lease of land awarded to a public university despite the fact that it has legal protection of stay from the court. He said that the action of the then CM was a case of contempt of court.

Justice Rasheed asked Khattak to appear before the court to explain his position otherwise the bench would charge him with contempt of court.

“If the former CM was interested in the establishment of any private university in the district he should allocate his own land or buy land for it, a legal lease of a public university cannot be cancelled, particularly in presence of stay order of the court,” Justice Rashed added.

The additional advocate general of K-P told the court that former CM is now the federal minister for defence and could not reach the court today. “The defence minister can entertain the court with his written statement,” the ADG said.

The bench told the additional advocate general that the former CM has to appear before the court in person and also asked him to submit written reply on the case.

Justice Rashed also warned the additional advocate general that if the defence minister fails to appeared before the court, the contempt of court charges would frame against the federal minister.

The court has adjourned the case for three weeks.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 6^th, 2018.