Illegal allotment?: SHC stays lease of forest land

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) has suspended the operation of an administrative letter issued by the provincial authorities to lease out 6,300 acres of forest land in the Badin and Sujawal districts for farming till further orders. On Monday, a division bench, headed by Justice Munib Akhtar, gave the interim order on a petition filed by MNA Syed Ayaz Ali Shah Shirazi against the illegal allotment of the forest land. The court issued notice to the forest department secretary, chief conservator, conservator of forests, divisional forest officer and Badin district SSP to file comments on the petition by July 23. The petitioner requested the court to declare the allotment illegal and suspend the operation of the letter.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 15^th, 2014.