Land use: ‘No case against any part of army admissible’

Counsel says Fortress Stadium Management is part of army.

LAHORE:

The Fortress Stadium Management (FSM) was part of the army so no petition against it could be entertained by the court, said Ahmer Bilal Soofi, the counsel for FSM.

He said this in response to a petition that said Fortress Square Plaza was constructed in violation of legal provisions and without approval of the land owner.

The counsel for Nayyer Khan, the petitioner, told a single bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday that the plaza had been built after razing the building of Brigade headquarters.

He said the plaza had been constructed without the Cantonment Board’s  approval. He said the board had admitted that it did not approve the construction plan.

The petitioner’s counsel said the FSM was not a registered or tax paying entity. He said the constitution/policy of the FSM did not say it was part of the army.

He said the respondents had admitted that the land on which the plaza was built belonged to the government. He said no government representative had signed the project or lease agreement. He said the agreement was signed between the FSM and DUPAK Developers Pakistan.

He said Dupak was selling shops through Colliers without authorisation by the federal government.

“The project violates the cantonment laws. Less than two per cent of the total revenue is given to the government rather than the 25 per cent claimed by the respondents.”

He said the project land “effectively belongs to the people of Pakistan” and any proceeds should go to the people of the country.

He denied the respondents’ claim that his client had filed the petition with malafide intentions.

The judge adjourned the hearing until June 13.

The petition says that the shopping complex has been built on 60,942 square feet. It says the FSM has leased out the land to DUPAK Developers Pakistan for 33 years starting 2007.

The petitioner said the Fortress Stadium was specified for military purposes and no commercial activity should be allowed there.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 7^th, 2014.