HYDERABAD, Oct 20: A division bench of the Sindh High Court, Hyderabad, has quashed notices issued by the FIA to the Hyderabad Railway Employees Cooperative Housing Society , initiating an investigation into a property matter involving the railways department and the housing society.

The bench, comprising Justice Attaur Rehman and Justice Amir Hani Muslims, observed that the exercise carried out by the FIA against the petitioner society was not covered by the FIA Act and it had no power to interfere into the matter which was between the Pakistan Railways and the petitioner and based on lease agreement.

It further said the railways department had not made any complaint to the FIA against the petitioner society for any action and the FIA on its own had taken up the matter.

The court also restrained the FIA from taking any action, envisaged in those notices, against the housing society.

The petitioner's counsel maintained that the Pakistan Railways through an agreement dated Oct 12, 1987, had leased a piece of land and later a separate lease deed had also been executed between the parties for 99 years which was still in force.

Ahmad Ali Shaikh appeared on behalf of the deputy attorney general with the assistant director of the FIA, Hyderabad, Abdul Hameed Bhutto, and the assistant director, legal, Bakhtiar Ali Channa.

He stated that the housing society's office-bearers had violated terms of the lease and misappropriated properties and monies of petitioner. He observed that in case of any violation of lease agreement or terms of lease deed, the respondents were empowered to take action.