ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court’s recent “sink or sail” ruling in the One Constitution Avenue case has been challenged by a group of high-profile appellants, including former air chief Mujahid Anwar Khan, ex-ICC chairman Ehsan Mani, renowned journalist Nasim Zehra and other influential sub-lessees of the disputed luxury towers.

The intra-court appeal, filed before the same court, seeks to overturn a single bench’s judgment dated April 30, 2026, which upheld the cancellation of the project’s lease and linking the fate of flat owners to that of the developer, BNP (Private) Limited. The appellants argue that their lawfully acquired property rights cannot be extinguished merely because the builder defaulted on payments to the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

The case revolves around a 13.5-acre plot near Constitution Avenue, originally leased by the CDA to BNP in 2005 for the construction of a five-star hotel and serviced apartments. Over time, BNP constructed two residential towers, Tower B and Tower C, and sold sub-leases to dozens of influential buyers. These included former prime minister Imran Khan, who later on sold his flat, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan, former State Bank governor Ashraf Wathra, former chief justice Nasirul Mulk, retired naval chief Mohammad Asif Sandila, senior journalist Absar Alam and many others from the political, judicial, military and media elite.

However, disputes arose when BNP defaulted on lease payments. The CDA cancelled the lease in March 2023, leading to a fresh round of litigation.

In its April 30, 2026 judgment, a single bench of the IHC upheld the cancellation and observed that sub-lessees “have to sink or sail with the petitioner”, meaning their rights would rise or fall with BNP’s fortunes.

The intra-court appeal, filed by Ehsan Mani, Nasim Zehra, and Myra Faisal, contends that the single bench erred in law by bundling their rights with those of BNP. They point out that the Supreme Court of Pakistan, in a detailed order dated January 9, 2019, had already protected the constructed towers from being taken over by the CDA in case of future default. The apex court had directed BNP to pay Rs17.5 billion in installments and explicitly separated the land under the two towers from the rest of the plot.

“The Impugned Judgment fails to take into account that Clause 2.6 of the lease granted by the CDA to BNP gave BNP unrestricted right to sublet. Therefore, even upon cancellation of the principal lease, the CDA steps into the shoes of the lessor and is bound to recognise the sub-lessees’ rights,” the appeal states.

The appellants also note that the CDA itself, after cancelling the lease in 2023, appointed an administrator and a Resident Committee to manage the towers.

The One Constitution Avenue plot has a chequered history. Earlier governments failed to auction it for a five-star hotel. According to the documents available with Dawn, the said location was earmarked for five star hotel. Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto faced a reference for attempting to allot this and adjoining land for construction of water park and five star hotel.

The Lahore High Court in 1995 rejected allegations of misconduct against the former prime minister over a proposed hotel project on CDA land near Rawal Lake. In that case, the court found no proof of personal pressure or illegal orders and observed that the project was still under consideration.

The PML-N government in 1998 attempted to amend the Master Plan to allow high-rises, but the plan was overtaken by General Musharraf’s takeover, under whom the plot was eventually auctioned to BNP.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2026