Abuse of powers: SHC stops CBC from auctioning parking fee collection rights

The CBC had, on October 30, published a public notice to auction parking sites in Blocks 8 and 9 of Clifton.

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) restrained the Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) from finalising the auction of rights to collect parking fees at various parking sites in Blocks No. 8 and 9 of the locality, as the CBC does not have the 'powers to levy the fee.'

A division bench, comprising Justices Sajjad Ali Shah and Shaukat Ali Memon, also issued notices to the defence ministry and the chief executive officer of the CBC for December 3 to file comments in this regard.

The powers of the cantonment board to levy the parking fee were challenged by a man, Muhammad Sajjad Haider, who lives in the board's territorial jurisdictions.

Advocate Shafiq Ahmed, who represented the petitioner, submitted that the CBC had on October 30 published a public notice to auction various parking sites in Blocks 8 and 9 of Clifton to private contractors for the recovery of the parking fee.



Cantonment's powers

The petitioner's lawyer argued that the CBC had no powers to levy the parking fee under the Cantonments Act, 1924. Despite this, they had advertised the auction rights of the parking fee charges.

To support his contention, the lawyer relied upon the judgments by the Sindh High Court and the Lahore High Court, wherein it has been held that there was no provision empowering the cantonment board to charge the fee.

Competent authority

Fee can only be charged subject to sanction of the competent authority for occupation or use of any stall, standing shed or pen in the public market or public slaughter house, or for the right to expose goods of sale in the market, or the weighing or measuring of goods, he explained. "The competent authority means the chief of the army staff or any other officer appointed by the federal government in respect of one or more cantonments," he added.

Power devolution

The petitioner's lawyer also pointed out that the Defence Housing Authority, after developing the area, had not handed over amenities to the CBC. He said that the land was not re-classified in 'C' class. The law mandates the developer to hand over the amenities to the municipal authority, which is the CBC, thus the amenity land shall be re-classified as 'C' class.

The court was pleaded to declare the auction of the parking fee rights by the CBC as illegal, unlawful and without having lawful authority.

After preliminary hearing, the two-judges issued notices to the defense ministry and the CBC CEO for December 3 to file their comments in this regard. "Till then, the proceedings of auctioning rights to collect parking fee shall not be finalized," they ordered.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13^th, 2014.