Justice Ayesha A Malik of the Lahore High Court warned the Fortress Stadium Management on Thursday that activities on Fortress Square plaza will be stayed if it failed to submit replies by the next hearing. She was hearing a petition challenging the plaza’s construction on land that was specified for military purposes.
The judge said this after the Fortress Stadium Management and Dupak Pakistan Developers, the marketing contractor, had failed to submit their replies. The judge warned the respondents that their failure to submit replies within a week would prompt the court to suspend all construction and property transfer activities. The respondents’ counsel has requested three weeks to file replies.
The petitioner’s counsel Saad Rasool told the court that by delaying replies the respondents were gaining time to finish remaining sales. He said they were collecting million of rupees every month from buyers oblivious of the project’s disputed status.
A standing counsel for the government submitted a reply on behalf of three other respondents: the Ministry of Defence, the Military Lands DG and the Cantonments and Military Estates Officer. They said two policy directives from the Ministry of Defence allow commercial use of A-1 land for the constructing and renting shops.
Rasool said the three respondents’ reply sought to supersede the country’s law by inter-departmental policy letters.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 16th, 2014.