Illegal construction: More time sought for a reply in Fortress shopping mall case

Petition states shopping complex was built in violation of the law.

LAHORE:

Lahore High Court on Tuesday once again sought parawise comments from the Ministry of Defence and the Fortress Stadium Management on a petition challenging the legitimacy of a five-storey shopping mall next to the stadium.

Justice Ayesha A Malik of the LHC directed respondents to file their reply on or before April 17 – the next date of the hearing. Advocate Ahmar Bilal Soofi filed his letter of attorney on behalf of the Ministry Of Defence, and Advocate Sameer Khosa on behalf of the company that has constructed the plaza. Both counsel requested the court for more time to file their replies.

The court was hearing a petition by Nayyer Khan, a journalist, stating that the shopping complex built on 60,942 square feet had been constructed in violation of the law.

His counsel, Saad Rasool, said the land belonged to the federal government but the Fortress Stadium Management had leased out the land to DUPAK Developers Pakistan on October 27, 2007, for 33 years to construct a plaza. He said the construction was complete and the management was handing over possession of shops.

The agreement with DUPAK Developers states that the Pakistan Army is the sole owner of the land but in fact the land belongs to the federal government.

He said according to a letter by the Military Estate Officer, the land is specified as Class-AI land and is reserved only for specific military purposes .

He said the updated version of the Fortress Stadium Policy on the land stated that “this particular piece of land can only be utilised by the army for defence and for non-commercial purposes”.

He said the FSM, an unregistered private entity, with no legal standing or part in the government did not have the authority to lease out the land. “No approval from the Environment Protection Agency was obtained to construct the plaza either.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 26^th, 2014.