PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court has set aside cancellation of a 30-kanal plot allotted around three decades ago to a leading hospitality company for construction of a five-star hotel in Hayatabad Township by Peshawar Development Authority.

A bench consisting of Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Inamullah allowed a petition filed by Hashwani Hotels and declared void the impugned order issued by PDA on June 19, 2025, through which the allotment of the land, situated at the heart of Hayatabad Township, had been cancelled.

The said plot at Phase-II of Hayatabad was allotted to M/S Hashwani Group on Feb 13, 1996 for construction of Zaver Pearl Continental Hotel. As per the original allotment letter, the company had to complete construction of the building within three years till April 24, 1999.

Petitioner’s counsel Imran Khan Sikandari contended that the cancellation was illegal and in clear violation of the legal doctrine of “Promissory Estoppel”, which prevented authorities from going back on their commitments.

Accepts plea of hospitality company about land allotted to it 30 years ago

He informed the court that both the PDA and provincial government had formally agreed in writing to extend the construction deadline until December 31, 2026. He argued that the impugned action was contrary to sections 24-A and 26 of General Clauses Act, and also violated Article 10-A of the Constitution, which guaranteed the right to a fair trial.

He pointed out that the grey structure of the hotel had already been completed, making it a project of significant importance for the province. Mr Sikandri pointed out multiple reasons for delay in completion of the project, stating that the petitioner had from time-to-time informed PDA about the reasons for the delay through different communications.

He said that there were multiple reasons for the delay including terrorists’ threats, Covid-19 pandemic and economic hardships. He said that a suicide blast took place on Nov 27, 2017, near the site of the project that forced the contractor to abandon the project for the time being.

He claimed that the project was in final stages, therefore, any unwarranted action taken by the respondents including PDA at that stage couldn’t be justified in law.

The PDA’s counsel stated that the company was served with repeated notices from1996 to 2004 but the petitioner neither could get the building plan approved, nor could he construct the building after lapse of nine years, due to which the allotment was cancelled on March 8, 2005.

He said that the chairman of Hashwani Group, Sadarud Din Hashwani, had submitted a letter on Jan 30, 2008, to the then caretaker chief minister Shamsul Mulk, requesting for restoration of the plot. He added that the plot was subsequently restored by the chief minister with the condition that construction of the hotel should be completed within 36 months from the date of approval of the building plan.

The counsel said that the original plan was approved in 2010 and the date for completion was Sep 27, 2013. However, he said that the construction couldn’t be completed and the company promised that the inauguration would be held soon.

Subsequently, he stated that in 2014 the company made a request for revising the building drawing for construction of additional commercial floor that was approved following which it had to complete the construction by Aug 23, 2019, but it again failed to complete the same.

After different developments, the PDA’s board in its meeting on May 22, 2024, gave a target time of one year up to May 25, 2025, to make operational the hotel otherwise the allotment of the plot would be cancelled. As the petitioner failed to complete the hotel in a 30-year long period, PDA finally issued the impugned cancellation order, he added.

He maintained that the chief minister, in his capacity as chairman of the PDA board, held full authority to make such decisions, and therefore the petition was not maintainable.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2026