Officials summoned in land acquisition case

LAHORE

The Lahore High Court on Monday summoned commissioners and land acquisition collectors of three divisions, including Lahore, Faisalabad and Gujranwala to explain emergency  imposed to acquire land for different development projects.A full bench headed by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah issued this order on petitions challenging acquisition of land on emergency basis for development projects. 

Justice Shahid Karim and Justice Shams Mehmood Mirza are the other members of the bench. The petitioners’ counsel argued that the government had imposed emergency to acquire land and was not giving appropriate compensation for their lands.

The counsel said the government was building Ring road on Multan road and forcing people to leave their houses and shops immediately. Aashiana Housing, Degree College for Women, Narowal, District Hospital Bhawana, Sialkot and other projects were being built, they said. They submitted that the notifications issued to the citizens did not show any reason behind emergency imposed for acquiring land. People were losing their houses and shops but unfortunately the government was not doing anything for the affectees, they said. Advocate Ahmad Owaise, legal adviser on the Ring road, told the bench that the ring road project was initiated in 2005 but the international organisations gave funds now and pressurising the government to build this project immediately.

Assistant Advocate General Anwar Hussain said that the law allows the government to continue its projects on normal and emergency basis. He argued that the power of imposing emergency was very essential for a government as it has to do development projects for the entire country or a province. The project of Degree College for Women, Narowal was important as there was no college and the female students had to reach colleges in other cities, argued Mr. Hussain. Keeping in view the troubles of female students, he argued, the government imposed emergency to acquire land for the college.

After hearing both sides, the full bench summoned three divisions’ commissioners and collectors to explain the emergency being imposed in different cities for development projects. The court will resume hearing today (Tuesday).