KARACHI: High Court attaches two projects on highway: Nazir told to post guards
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, April 1: The Sindh High Court asked its nazir on Thursday to affix notices across a 24-acre construction site of two sprawling residential and commercial projects on the Superhighway near Sohrab Goth to inform the public of the court attachment order.
The order, passed by Justice Mushir Alam on a Sindh government application, is aimed at safeguarding interests of gullible public who might book apartments, shops and bungalows in the two projects. The court also asked the nazir to post guards at the site to frustrate any attempt by the builder and developer to continue or resume the construction work. He was authorized to seek police assistance and take all other possible measures to protect the attached land.
The proceedings have been initiated by Ms Shahida Zafar Maniar, who was allotted 15 acres in late 80s. She executed a power of attorney in favour of M/s Rufi Builders. The attorney firm, she alleged, started raising residential and commercial projects in violation of the law and rules and regulations. It also appropriated nine acres of adjoining government land and covered spaces earmarked for nullah and roads.
The plaintiff said the attorney firm’s activities were in gross violation of the terms of the deed executed by her. Meanwhile, the provincial government cancelled the land allotted to the plaintiff and decided to resume the land in 2001. The plaintiff submitted that she should not be held responsible for any illegality committed by the attorney firm.
Justice Mushir Alam, who is seized of the suit, restrained the defendant firm, ordered attachment of the land in dispute and empowered the nazir to take effective steps to enforce the court order. Additional Advocate-General Abbas Ali appeared for the provincial government and Advocates Nadeem Azhar Siddiqui and Mohammad Sharif for the plaintiff and defendants, respectively.
BAIL REFUSED: Justice Shabbir Ahmed, meanwhile, refused bail to an accused involved in 70-million-rupee sales tax fraud.
Opposing the bail plea, Barrister Khurshid A. Hashmi, Deputy Attorney-General,submitted that applicant Shahid Aziz and others were facing trial for floating commercial concerns ‘on paper’. The non-existent concerns were subsequently registered with the sales tax collectorate. By using the sales tax invoices of the bogus companies, they fraudulently succeeded in obtaining refunds amounting to over Rs 70 million.
Justice Ahmed dismissed the bail plea as being void of merit. The hearing of co-accused Inamul Haq Butt’s bail plea was adjourned and an order on co-accused Syed Ali Jawad’s application was reserved.
ELECTION PETITION: An election tribunal, comprising Justice Syed Zawwar Hussain Jaffery, meanwhile, asked the joint provincial election commissioner, Shafiqur Rehman Iqbal, to appear on April 14 and explain why votes allegedly cast for petitioner Iftikhar Hussain Chaudhry of the PPP were credited to the haul of MMA’s Qari Gul Rehman, who won the October 2002 poll from NA-239 (Karachi), and other contestants.
The tribunal had ordered recount of ballots at the behest of the petitioner, who is represented by Advocate Khwaja Naveed Ahmed. The MNA’s tally amounted to 20887 and that of the petitioner to 20722 after the recount.
The petitioner’s counsel argued that a whole lot of 224 ballots cast in favour of his client were put in the envelops of other candidates and if these votes were counted in accordance with the law, the defeated candidate would not only nullify the lead but would win the poll by a margin of 59 votes.
The tribunal summoned the provincial election commissioner to explain why the votes were not counted in favour of the candidate for whom they were cast.
PLEA DISMISSED: Justice Jafri dismissed an application moved by Haji Lal Mohammad of Chakiwara, an under-trial prisoner, to quash the proceedings of the illegal arms case against him under Section 561-A of the code of criminal procedure.
He said he had been booked in a false case under Section 13-D of the Arms Ordinance. In fact, he claimed, his two sons were nominated in a murder case and he had been arrested and involved in an arms and narcotics case to procure their arrest by putting pressure on him.
State counsel Akhtar Rehana submitted that the law and legal process should be allowed to take their course. According to the prosecution, evidence was available to prove the case.
