KARACHI, Feb 3: A division bench of the Sindh High Court ordered on Friday that 14,075 square yards of the 23,999-plot at Orangi would be utilized for construction of a hospital while the structure raised on the remaining 9924 square yards would continue to serve as a police station.

Disposing of a writ petition filed by former MNA and federal minister Afaq Khan Shahid against the construction Mominabad police station on a plot of land allotted for an urban health centre, the bench observed that the lessor government had already allocated part of the land to the police department in 1991. It asked the government to build a hospital on the remaining area in accordance with its plan.

The petition was heard by a bench, comprising Justices Ghulam Rabbani and Munib Ahmed Khan, which had reserved its order. The judgment was announced by a new bench, consisting of Justices Ghulam Rabbani and Zia Pervez, on Friday.

Authored by Justice Munib Ahmed Khan, the judgment said that 9,924 square yards allotted to the police station by the provincial government, which had already been utilized by the police department, would continue to serve as a police station. The proposed 50-bed hospital shall be constructed on the remaining land as planned by the provincial health department.

The petitioner moved the court maintaining that the plot of land, measuring 23999 square yards was earmarked for an urban health centre consisting of 50 beds in 1995 due to his efforts.

The boundary wall was constructed with funds made available by the provincial government to the health department to protect it from encroachments. In March 2000, however, he was informed by residents that some construction was being raised on the plot. The petitioner moved the court after approaching officials who offered little help.

During proceedings, Additional Advocate General M. Ahmed Pirzada stated that the matter involved government departments and that the Advocate-General’s office advised the Sindh government to resolve the issue outside the court. As a result of the advice, a special meeting of the concerned departments, that is, the local government, health and home departments, was convened presided under the chairmanship of the law secretary and the issue was amicably resolved.

The bench noted that during proceedings, the respondent departments took a common stand that the land was allotted to the Sindh Police in the year 1991. The said allotment was never cancelled and thus the Mominabad police station was constructed on a legally allotted piece of land and no encroachment was involved.

The bench said that in view of the consensus arrived at between the government departments, the petition is disposed of in terms of the compromise and without going into other intricate questions.