October 04, 2007	Thursday	Ramazan 21, 1428

ISLAMABAD, Oct 3: The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected the plea of the 143 people who lost their apartments in the collapse of the Margalla Towers in the 2005 earthquake that the Rs90 million paid to them as rent should not form part of the Rs1.75 billion compensation announced by the court for them earlier.

Immediately afterwards the Margalla Towers Residents Action Committee (MTRAC) finalised the mechanics of payment with the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

That closed the long-sought compensation deal almost on the eve of the second anniversary of the devastating earthquake which killed nearly 73,000 people in northern Pakistan, 72 of them in the Margalla Towers.

Under the deal the CDA will deposit the amount in Supreme Court’s bank account with in a month. A three-member committee, comprising Munir Paracha, Salman Butt and the Registrar of the Supreme Court, will supervise the payment according the already agreed formula of compensation based on the size of the apartment lost.

CDA sources said that the hulk and the land of the destroyed Margalla Towers now belong to the CDA which is likely to auction it in the next few days.

“We have suggested to the CDA to auction the lot as it is as demolishing and clearing the site would be additional work for the CDA,” a senior official of the authority told Dawn.

The 148-apartment Margalla Towers had partially collapsed in the October 8, 2005 earthquake.

MTRAC’s information secretary Iftikhar Chaudhry said the Supreme Court did not touch on the 1,600-page report of the Prime Minister’s Inspection Commission on the Margalla Towers tragedy which accused present Chairman of the CDA, Kamran Lashari, and some of his predecessors and other officials of ignoring the construction faults in Margalla Towers during their terms.

However the court assured that the issue of criminal negligence on the part of CDA officials and the builder would be entertained later. The court intends to direct the government to secure the extradition of Ramzan Khokhar, the builder, and other accused in the case from the United Kingdom.

In the meantime, the court has decided that the compensation due to Ramzan Khokhar for the five apartments he owned in the building, amounting to about Rs90 million, would remain with the SC and not given to the accused.

APP: The bench issued notice to the builder of Margalla Towers Ramzan Khokhar to appear before the court at the next hearing.

The Chief Justice remarked that it was a historic decision in the history of Pakistan as a lingering demand of the affected people had been resolved amicably.