LHC stays ruling in army land lease case

A division bench issues order while hearing Punjab govt's intra-court appeal

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court (LHC) has suspended its earlier order that struck down a decision of the interim Punjab government to hand over 45,000 acres of land in three districts of Punjab to the Pakistan Army on a 20-year lease for corporate agriculture farming (CAF).

The division bench, led by Justice Ali Baqar Najafi, passed the order on Monday while hearing an intra-court appeal filed by the Punjab government against the LHC's March 30 order.

The court also issued notices to the respondents and sought a reply.

On March 30, a single-judge bench comprising Justice Abid Hussain Chattha stopped the caretaker government from proceeding with its plan to hand over 45,267 acres of land in Bhakkar, Khushab and Sahiwal districts of Punjab to the Pakistan Army for CAF.

Justice Chattha had ruled that the caretaker government lacked constitutional and legal mandate to take any decision regarding the CAF initiative and policy in any manner whatsoever in terms of Section 230 of the Elections Act 2017.

Later, the interim government moved an intra-court appeal, requesting the court to set aside the single-bench's order.  The government submitted that the project was initiated by the previous elected government and not by the interim government.

According to the law, the interim government is empowered to implement or finalise any pending decision and policy of the previous government, it added.  The government also contended that the court was not empowered to regulate agricultural policies.

It submitted that the June 22 order was not only in violation of the law but also had contradictions in it. After reviewing the petition’s contents, the court on Monday decided to suspend its previous ruling on the matter.

According to some reports citing informed sources, an agreement had been signed between the military, the Punjab government, and private firms dealing with corporate farming.

Later, the military’s land directorate wrote to the Punjab chief secretary, Board of Revenue and secretaries of the agriculture, forest, livestock and irrigation departments for handing over of 42,724-acre land in tehsils Kaloor Kot and Mankera in Bhakkar, 1,818 acres in tehsils Quaidabad and Khushab in Khushab, and 725 acres in tehsil Chichawatni of Sahiwal.

Under the project, the Punjab government was to provide the land while the army was to utilise its resources and retain the management of the project. The private sector was to invest and provide auxiliary support, including the supply of fertilisers.

A report cited military sources saying that the army was “not taking over the ownership of the land as it will remain the property” of the Punjab government. The army was to convert the mostly barren, uncultivated, and under-cultivated land into fertile land.

[APP with input from desk]