BoR report on Botanical Gardens land sought
Revised plan has the park is divided into five zones – public park, lake zone, thematic gardens, cultural zone, botanical garden and sports facilities. PHOTO: FILE
The Supreme Court on Tuesday sought a report from the Board of Revenue (BoR) regarding records it has of lands leased for the Botanical Gardens in Bani Gala.
This was directed as a three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin and Justice Sayyed Mazahar Alam Khan Miankhel heard a case regarding illegal constructions in Bani Gala and allotment of land for the Botanical Gardens.
During Tuesday's proceedings, Justice Bandial remarked that at the last hearing of the case, the court had asked the Survey of Pakistan to determine the boundaries of the garden.
At this, the Additional Attorney General (AAG) said that the Survey of Pakistan (SoP) could not find all the records related to the land of the garden.
He added that the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration - the district administration which holds all land records of the federal capital - had provided some records to SoP. However, since some of the land allotted to the gardens is owned by the Punjab government, the latter had failed to provide the relevant records which the SoP needed to complete its assessment.
He further remarked that the court should form a high-level committee so that all the relevant officials from the different departments and jurisdictions can sit in one place and settle the matter once and for all. At this, Justice Bandial said that the court had ordered the environment ministry in this regard during the last hearing of the case.
The entire area of the Botanical Garden is not controversial, Justice Bandial remarked, adding that it was easy to determine the limits of the disputed area.
The AAG replied that the SoP has submitted two maps of the area in the past. The map submitted in 2004 showed that the gardens were spread over 725 acres, he said.
The lawyer added that the real issue was the forest land which was owned by the Punjab government and it has the relevant records. Moreover, he said that the ICT had been formed in 1981 and there could be some discrepancies in their records.
A representative of Punjab forest department Punjab told the could that they had leased 721 acres of land in this area to the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
Justice Bandial stated that this is valuable government land and its boundaries should be determined. The court then directed a senior member of the Board of Revenue (BoR) and its secretary to submit a report in this regard and adjourned further hearings until the second week of December.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 18th, 2020.