IHC seeks clarification over illegal allotments

Orders Ministry of Housing not to violate rules while allotting residences to judges

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has sought clarification from the Ministry of Housing on illegal allotment of houses to judges and judicial officers.

The IHC registrar has written a letter to the Ministry of Housing and Works secretary on direction of Chief Justice Athar Minallah. It said the CJ has learned that judges and judicial officers were allotted houses in violation of the allotment rules 2002 and the superior court’s decisions.

The Ministry of Housing is directed that no house be allotted in violation of the Allotment Rules 2002 and the decisions of the courts. The chief justice has directed the Ministry of Housing to furnish a list of allotments with justifications, the letter said.

The IHC registrar has also attached copies of the Supreme Court's 2012 and Islamabad High Court's 2018 decisions along with the letter. Copies of the letter have also been sent to the secretary to the IHC chief justice and the personal secretaries of all IHC judges.

A day earlier, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had invited the ire of the IHC when the top anti-graft watchdog submitted a confidential reply in a land allotment case.

A division bench comprising CJ Minallah and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb was hearing a pre arrest bail petition of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Akram Khan Durrani.

Durrani is accused of allotting plots to his favourites, including some judges, during his tenure as federal housing minister in the last PML-N government. Commenting on the NAB report, the CJ had observed that the graft-buster was trying to “scandalize” the courts by its action.

"I make it clear that the judges of this high court will never be blackmailed," he said.

The judge had asked the NAB prosecutor and investigation officer what was there in the report that they were trying to keep confidential. Justice Aurangzeb had also noted that “patience has a limit”.

CJ Minallah observed that the names of the Supreme Court employees and high court judges are also mentioned in the list. The NAB, in its report, had also mentioned about allotment of some plots to some judges of the IHC.

He declared that the NAB request to keep the report confidential put a question mark on its eligibility. “Do you think we will hide the facts if you submit a confidential document,” the judge asked.

Referring to the details of the case, he asked where the minutes of the meeting held in 2014 were.

He inquired what the criminal aspect of the matter was if a house was allotted to a deputy commissioner. CJ Minallah said the judges present themselves for accountability first as no one is above the law.

He asked the investigation officer how and when the allotment of house was made to Justice Amir Farooq to which the NAB official responded that the judge was accorded the facility under rules 67.

The court rejected the NAB request to keep the report on the allotment of plots to judges confidential and ordered that the document be made public and a copy of it be provided to the petitioner’s counsel.

Justice Aurangzeb directed the NAB officer to disclose the names of people who were involved in the allotment of plots. The court referred the matter again to the NAB chairman and extended the pre-arrest bail of Durrrani till April 8.