ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has acquitted four officials of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) accused of corruption and criminal breach of trust in connection with the approval of Sector E-11 layout plan, while lambasting the prosecution and trial court for “carelessness” and ordering inquiries into the conduct of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

In a 14-page judgement, Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan allowed criminal revision petitions filed by Abdul Aziz Qureshi, Abdul Haq Brohi, Dr Zafar Iqbal Zafar and Shahid Yaqoob Chaudhry, overturning a 2024 trial court order that had dismissed their pleas for acquittal.

The case stemmed from FIR No. 1/2023, registered by the FIA on the CDA’s complaint, alleging illegal approval of a ‘rectified layout plan’ (LOP) for the Pakistan Medical Cooperative Housing Society (PMCHS) in Sector E-11 that led to E-11 flooding in 2021.

A hydrology study conducted by the army’s Directorate of Design and Consultancy (DD&C) in the following year has revealed that natural streams had narrowed down in E-11, which caused urban flooding.

Directs CDA chairman to conduct inquiry into filing of complaint against the acquitted officials

The report of the study stated: “The simulations revealed that every drainage channel in the area was overflowing its bank in the built-up area. However, no stream overflowed its banks outside the developed area.”

Because of the narrowing down of a stream which enters the sector from E-12 side saw urban flooding in Pakistan Medical Cooperative Housing Society (PMCHS) leaving a woman and her child dead besides inflicting loss to property and several vehicles.

The sector, which was exempted from land acquisition by former president Ayub Khan due to the Golra Shrine, houses some unauthorised societies, operating without having valid no-objection certificates and over 70 high-rise unauthorised buildings.

Most of these buildings were built during the last one decade, but the Capital Development Authority (CDA) failed to stop their construction as in most of the cases it confined itself to issuance of notices only.

The FIA accused the officials of violating CDA zoning regulations by approving a plan that allegedly reduced the width of a stormwater nullah from 60-70 feet to 18 feet, contravening the Modalities and Procedures under the ICT Zoning Regulations 1992. Charges included criminal breach of trust (Section 409 PPC) and corruption (Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947).

The IHC however highlighted glaring flaws in the prosecution’s case.

The judge concluded that the prosecution failed to identify any “property” entrusted to the accused, a prerequisite under Section 409 PPC. The court noted that the provisional LOP did not permit construction or plot sales, as a final No-Objection Certificate (NOC) was never issued.

The CDA’s internal inquiry in 2023 cleared the officials, finding no misconduct. The nullah’s construction predated the LOP approval, with the society allegedly violating rules as early as 2008, the judgement said.

It further said that the FIA could not explain how the LOP approval caused financial gain or violated zoning laws, especially after the CDA withdrew the plan in 2016 due to non-compliance.

Justice Khan criticised the trial court’s “superficial” dismissal of the acquittal pleas, stating it “betrayed a failure to scrutinise the record.”

He emphasised that the case hinged on documentary evidence, not oral testimony, and the prosecution’s reliance on “irrelevant grounds” rendered the charges unsustainable.

The court ordered the CDA chairman to probe why the authority filed a criminal complaint while its internal inquiry was ongoing and identify officials responsible.

The FIA director general has also been directed to investigate the inquiry officer’s rationale for pursuing charges despite exculpatory evidence, warning of disciplinary action if malpractice is found.

Both reports must be submitted within six weeks, the court order said.

The defence counsel, Kashif Ali Malik, pointed out anomaly in the conduct of the CDA’s authorities and said that after the initial clearance in the internal inquiry the civic agency forwarded the matter to the FIA with mala fide intentions.

Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2025