Sialkot farmland: ‘Army training cadets on my land’
The petitioner accused the Forests Department of illegally occupying his ancestral land for almost a decade.
LAHORE:
The Lahore High Court on Tuesday gave the defence secretary a “final opportunity” to explain why the army had taken control of 630 kanals of agricultural land on Pasrur Road in Sialkot. The court also instructed Sialkot District Forests Officer Jamil Ahmad to respond to a contempt of court notice issued to him for criticising a Supreme Court verdict before the High Court. The petitioner, Rana Jahangir, accused the Forests Department of illegally occupying his ancestral land for almost a decade. He said that the Supreme Court in 2011 had ordered the department to hand him the ownership of the land within two months, while the Revenue Department had also ruled that the land rightfully belonged to him. But instead of complying with the court’s orders, the Forests Department had handed over the land to the army and challenged the Supreme Court verdict before the High Court. He said that the army was using the land for cadet training. Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan adjourned the hearing till May 8.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 6th, 2013.
The Lahore High Court on Tuesday gave the defence secretary a “final opportunity” to explain why the army had taken control of 630 kanals of agricultural land on Pasrur Road in Sialkot. The court also instructed Sialkot District Forests Officer Jamil Ahmad to respond to a contempt of court notice issued to him for criticising a Supreme Court verdict before the High Court. The petitioner, Rana Jahangir, accused the Forests Department of illegally occupying his ancestral land for almost a decade. He said that the Supreme Court in 2011 had ordered the department to hand him the ownership of the land within two months, while the Revenue Department had also ruled that the land rightfully belonged to him. But instead of complying with the court’s orders, the Forests Department had handed over the land to the army and challenged the Supreme Court verdict before the High Court. He said that the army was using the land for cadet training. Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan adjourned the hearing till May 8.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 6th, 2013.