Last month, IHC rejected the motion against canceling the lease, saying the buyers did not have property rights.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday passed an important order restraining the authorities from evicting the owners of the sublet flats at One Constitution Avenue until further orders.
A division bench comprising Justice Muhammad Azam Khan and Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas heard the intra-judicial appeals filed by former Air Chief Mujahid Anwar Khan, former ICC Chairman Ahsan Mani, former Senate Chairman Wasim Sajjad and others. The appellants challenged paragraph 30 of the Single Chamber’s decision regarding the protection of third party rights.
Lawyers Taimur Aslam and Ali Raza appeared on behalf of the appellants, while Kashif Ali Malik represented the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
During the proceedings, the CDA’s lawyer argued that the appeals were not admissible. Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas remarked: “We will hear the matter in its entirety later; today we are only considering their request for a stay.”
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The court asked whether the apartment owners’ case was considered when the matter was before the Supreme Court. The court also questioned how the residents started living in the building without a completion certificate.
Justice Khan remarked: “Was the CDA sleeping when there was no completion certificate but the residents had already started living there?
The CDA lawyer informed the court that the building was yet to receive its completion certificate.
The court then ruled that no eviction of apartment owners should take place until further notice.
The case involves the CDA’s cancellation of the project’s lease. Last month, IHC rejected the petition against the cancellation of the lease and ruled on related applications filed by the apartment owners.
The residents argued that the CDA had approved the construction plan and issued a no-objection certificate (NOC), after which the flats were purchased. They argued that the dispute was between the CDA and the developer and should be resolved between the parties involved.
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In its detailed verdict, the court ruled that the buyers had no ownership rights.
The court said the buyers did not have ownership rights because the project’s lease had been terminated and proper legal procedures had not been followed regarding the transfer of ownership.
The project originally arose from a 13.5-acre plot of land allocated to the BNP group following an auction on March 9, 2005 for Rs 4.88 billion. Although possession was handed over in the same year after an initial payment of Rs 800 million, BNP has so far paid Rs 1.02 billion, while the remaining Rs 3.85 billion is recoverable in installments till 2026.
In July 2016, the CDA canceled the lease, citing multiple violations. The decision was upheld by the IHC in 2017, which also declared the conversion of a five-star hotel project into luxury apartments illegal. However, the Supreme Court overturned this judgment in early 2019, ordering the developer to pay 17.5 billion rupees in installments over eight years.
The CDA argued that BNP had failed to meet its financial obligations after 21 years, saying freehold was conditional on payment of 100% of the cost of the land. Of the total debt amount of 17.5 billion rupees, only 2.9 billion rupees – about 16.6% – has reportedly been paid.
