SHC rejects appeals against conviction of KDA officers

Court rules on reference pertaining to China-cutting in LARDP

KARACHI:

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has rejected appeals against conviction of KDA officers in a reference pertaining to China-cutting of more than 227 plots in Lines Area Redevelopment Project (LARDP).

A two-member bench headed by Justice KK Agha ruled on the appeals against the conviction of the accused. The court rejected the appeals of six suspects, including former director land Ata Abbas.

The court, however, reduced the sentence given to the suspects from seven to five years.

The accountability court had also imposed a fine of Rs5 million on each suspect. Other suspects include Farid Ahmad Yousafani, Tahir Jamil Durrani, Farid Naseem, Shahid Umar and Wasim Iqbal. According to NAB, there is strong evidence against the suspects who caused a loss of billions of rupees to the national exchequer.

The accused Farid Ahmed Yousafani and others were accused of China-cutting of 227 plots in the project. According to the lawyers of the accused, no damage was done to the national treasury. All the suspicious properties have been returned to the government.

Plight of govt schools

The Sindh High Court made important observations on the plight of government schools.

During the hearing of a petition of a plot owner in Saeedabad, Baldia Town, pertaining to a dispute over whether the school land was public or private, Justice Syed Hassan Azhar Rizvi told the public prosecutor that in the past the government officers had even handed over a government school to a Nihari seller.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Syed Hassan Azhar Rizvi heard the petition.  Justice Rizvi told the public prosecutor that the condition of the government schools was extremely bad. "A government school at Dalmia was even sold to a builder. This action of your officers is tantamount to robbery. The government school plots are being sold to builders," Justice Rizvi remarked.

The petitioner argued that the private school was established in 1970. "Upon nationalisation, the school was taken into government custody. When the building became dilapidated in 1980, it came back to 'my property'. After all the approval, the property was returned to me. When construction began, the education department claimed the plot was official. It should be declared that the school land is not a government property but a private property," the petition contended.

Dr Afia case

The Sindh High Court has sought arguments on the admissibility of a petition seeking permission for a meeting of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui with her family members. Dr Afia is imprisoned in the United States.

A two-member bench headed by Chief Justice Sindh High Court, Justice Ahmed Ali Sheikh heard the petition. The petitioner's letter was submitted by Khurram Lakhani Advocate on her behalf.

The court sought arguments pertaining to the maintainability of the petition.

The petitioner's counsel sought time for arguing over the maintainability of the petition. The court adjourned the hearing for one week, seeking arguments on the maintainability of the petition.

The petition has been filed by Dr. Aafia Siddiqui's sister Dr. Fauzia Siddiqui.

In the petition, it was urged that the court may issue an order for a meeting with Dr. Afia Siddiqui, who is imprisoned in the US jail. Aafia was sentenced by a US court in 2010 to 86 years in prison.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 26^th, 2022.