ISLAMABAD, June 30: A large number of people, who have submitted applications and deposited a substantial amount for plots in a private housing scheme, may lose their hard-earned money as the owners of the housing society have shifted their office from F-8 to an unknown place.
“No one knows the exact location of their office which is creating apprehensions,” one of the applicants told this scribe.
Interestingly, the CDA had recently issued a “no objection certificate” to the society, allowing it to go ahead with its housing scheme.
As many as 110 people had applied for plots in the housing scheme in E-16 sector and deposited Rs110,000 each with the housing society.
Earlier, a local court had ordered attachment of all properties of the owners of the society for being defaulters of the defunct Bank of Commerce and Credit International (BCCI).
The bank’s liquidators obtained a decree from the London High Court against the five owners of the society, including Syed Raza Ali, Syed Khateeb Haider, Syed Adeeb Haider. The liquidators claimed that the five persons, during their employments with the bank, plundered 35 million pounds sterling.
One of the housing society’s contractors, Ghulam Hussain, later filed a suit with the civil court of Islamabad, stating that he owned some land of the society which should be excluded from the property for which the court has issued attachment order.
The civil court, headed by Syed Muzaffar Ali Shah, while rejecting the claim, noted in its order that both the petitioner and the owners of the scheme, were “in collusion with each other to frustrate the legal proceedings initiated on behalf of the BCCI”.
Despite the order of attachment of the property, the society owners continued to operate and obtained an NoC from the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
At the same time, they continued to avoid those persons who had bought plots from them and were demanding that their money be returned because of the local court’s orders.
The housing scheme had its office in a private house in F- 8/3, but eversince the court passed the order against the owners, they moved to another office.
They claim that they have their office in Blue Area, but nobody knows its location. This has created apprehensions among the applicants who fear that they may lose their money and never get the plots.
Syed Khateeb Haider, who had briefly been detained at Margalla Police station for having not paid salary to one of his staff members for the last two years, told this scribe that he was trying to arrange a settlement with the liquidators of the BCCI outside the court.
He, however, did not offer any satisfactory answer as to why he and his brothers shifted their office from F-8 to Blue Area and where exactly the new office was located. He said: “We will give you some good news soon.”