KARACHI, May 15: Conflicting claims were made on Wednesday by the federal government departments about the status of Bhopal House, while challenging the reported assertion by Shahryar M. Khan, former foreign secretary, at a news conference on Tuesday.

The rejoinder faxed by the ministry of housing and works said the property in question was “purchased by the government of Pakistan from the Nawab of Bhopal for a consideration of Rs450,000 in 1958”. However, another rejoinder faxed by the Press Information Department (PID) said the “building had been in possession of the government of Pakistan as an evacuee property since 1947, without any objection from the claimant or anyone on his behalf uptil 1992”.

It was intriguing to note that the PID’s rejoinder accused the former foreign secretary, whose grandfather and mother had scarified a lot for Pakistan and Quaid-i-Azam’s ideals, of “grossly misrepresenting the facts” and “misusing his official political connections and tried to get undue benefit.”

Both the versions had one common point i.e. the press conference of Mr Khan was “one-sided”.

According to the ministry of housing and works, the news-item gave a one-sided story suppressing some vital facts.

It claimed that “the property, known as Bhopal House bearing survey No. 25 & 26 Old Clifton, Karachi, measuring 2,233 and 2,459 square yards, was purchased by late Nawab Hameedullah Khan of Bhopal in July, 1947. It had a main building, having an area of 10,147 square feet, with some outhouses.

“The building was requisitioned by the government and used for the office of the ministry of foreign affairs and commonwealth relations. The premises were purchased by the government from the Nawab of Bhopal for a consideration of Rs 450,000 in the year 1958.

“On shifting of the ministry of foreign affairs to Islamabad, the building was allotted to the Intelligence Bureau for their office accommodation.

“In 1992, after a lapse of 34 years, Mr Shahryar Khan, on behalf of his mother, Princess Abida Sultaan, filed a request with the then prime minister for releasing Bhopal House to her on the plea that his mother was the sole legal heir of the Nawab of Bhopal. Accordingly, a directive was issued by the then prime minister for handing over the property to her. Needless to mention that this directive was got issued through misrepresentation of facts. Later, the issue was re-examined and in 1995 this directive was cancelled. Princess Abida Sultaan then filed a constitutional petition in 1995 and got a status quo order from the High Court of Sindh.

“In 1997, Mr Shahryar Khan approached the minister for housing and works with a proposal for out-of-court settlement.

The government appointed a high-level committee to examine the issue which came to the conclusion that Mr Shahryar had no case for ownership of the building.

“As Mr Shahryar Khan was in unlawful occupation of a part of the building, it was decided to get it vacated as per law. This process started before the unfortunate demise of Princess Abida Sultaan and its coincidence with the event is only accidental.”

It said the case was at present subjudice and the government would abide by any decision that emerges after due process of law was completed.

The clarification sent by the PID, on the other hand, termed the property in question as “evacuee property” and said that “Princess Abida Sultan had never claimed the ownership of the house till 1992 for almost 32 years after the death of her father. Her father, the late Nawab Hameedullah Khan of Bhopal (who never migrated to Pakistan), had never made any claim regarding the ownership of the property till his death in 1960.”

It was also claimed that Mr Shaharyar Khan, who was in foreign service since 1957 had also not raised the issue of ownership, despite having worked in the building itself.

“Unfortunately the applicant had misused his official position and political connections and tried to get undue benefit for himself by initiating action in the name of his mother and later on got the property gifted in the name of his wife,” the PID version claimed.

It maintained that the office of the Intelligence Bureau was constructed in 1983 on a portion of the said property which belonged to the federal government. “The allotment and possession of a portion of the property by an illegal order of the then prime minister (Nawaz Sharif) in 1993 was unconstitutional, illegal and based on fraud,” the rejoinder said, adding that the allotment was cancelled by the government of Benazir Bhutto in 1995 who had ordered vacation of the building.

Referring to Mr Khan’s offer of out-of-court settlement, the PID version claimed that it was an attempt to avoid the consequences of what it termed dismissal of the suit.

It said that Mr Khan was given sufficient time to vacate the premises, who instead of complying with lawful order again resorted to underhand tactics to deprive the government of Pakistan of public property, hence action was taken strictly in accordance with the law of the land, and not otherwise as alleged by Mr Khan.

It termed Mr Khan’s attempts to contact senior government functionaries as an attempt to bearing extraneous influence in his favour to threaten the process of law.

It claimed that “reliable sources informed that Mr Shaharyar Khan had given a personal gentleman’s undertaking to a very high government functionary in 1995, when this allotment was cancelled, that he would vacate the premises within three months and dispossession proceedings, which were in the final stages be stopped. Unfortunately Mr Khan belied and betrayed this trust reposed in him and obtained a stay order from the courts.”