ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday directed an additional attorney general to furnish details about the Gun and Country Club’s lease, construction and the building plan.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar while hearing a case related to the club asked how a marriage hall had been established on its premises by the club administration.

A representative of the club told the court that the wedding hall was illegal.

Additional attorney general told to submit information about club’s lease, construction and building plan

To this, the chief justice remarked if the wedding hall was illegal why the administration was not demolishing it? The representative said operators of the hall had obtained a stay order from a local court.

The apex court also asked about a party hall on the land which had been leased for shooting range.

CDA Member Planning Asad Mehboob Kayani told the court that as per the original plan the gun club was supposed to be constructed on the premises of the sports board for which the CDA had in the 70s allotted 145 acres to the Pakistan Sports Complex.

The official said apparently the club was constructed on an encroached land owned by the CDA. But the representative of the club said the CDA had leased out 72 acres for the club.

The court directed the additional attorney general to furnish details of the lease, construction of buildings, building plan along with the stay orders on the next date of hearing next week.

The club was established as a target shooting facility for the 2004 South Asian Games but later it was converted into a club that caters to the affluent class. The club has several shooting ranges, a swimming pool, tennis courts and restaurants for its almost 1,000 members.

It has three indoor shooting ranges: 10 metres for air pistol competitions, 25 metres for 2.2 pistol competitions and 50 metres for point 2.2 pistol and rifle competitions. It also has three outdoor firing ranges, a skeet range, a 124-bore shotgun range and a trap range.

The club was established on Nov 18, 2002, through the Gun Club Resolution which was subsequently notified by the now-devolved ministry of sports.

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2018