ISLAMABAD: Officers of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) have occupied about 1,100 houses meant for those working in various ministries and divisions of the federal government.

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has sought details of the officers living in government accommodation managed by the Estate Office as the officials of the civic agency are entitled allotment of houses on the pool of the CDA.

There are 2,400 government accommodation on the disposal of the civic agency, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Works Mohammad Ashfaq Ghumman informed the IHC during the hearing of a petition filed by Director General (DG) Interior Ministry Ali Nawaz Malik seeking possession of a house allotted to him by the Estate Office.

Mr Ghumman informed the court about the occupancy of houses on the pool of Estate Office which were allotted to civil servants working under the federal government as per the general waiting list (GWL). IHC Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani was hearing the petition.

The petitioner adopted before the court that the Estate Office in November last year had allotted a house to him and also issued an eviction order of its occupant, a CDA’s deputy director, Engineer Syed Mohammad Hassan.

As per background of the case, Mr Hassan was allotted a house in G-6/4 on March 1, 2016, on the assurance from the CDA that a same category house shall be placed on the pool of the Estate Office and the latter cancelled the allotment of National Assembly Deputy SecretaryMohammad Yaseen Saleemi.

Mr Saleemi filed the petition in the IHC where Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani declared the allotment illegal and directed him to hand over its possession to the Estate Office as he was “not authorised to use such a property.”

Mr Hassan challenged the decision before the Supreme Court which upheld the order.

Before Justice Kayani, Advocate Shahid Kamal, counsel for Mr Malik, argued that the house was still in the possession of the CDA officer.

According to him, since the CDA was an autonomous body and its employees were not civil servants, they cannot be allotted the government accommodation from the Estate Office pool.

He requested Justice Kayani to issue direction to implement the earlier order against the unauthorised occupant of the house.

The court however sought a complete list of officers living in Estate Office’s houses and adjourned further hearing till Feb 20.

Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2023