Katas Raj case: Being part of state, judiciary to plug gap: CJ

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Wednesday observed that judiciary was also part of the state and it will not step out of its constitutional jurisdiction but will intervene to plug the gap wherever it may be.

He gave these remarks heading a three-member bench of the apex court that resumed hearing into suo moto case regarding Katas Raj temple. The notice was taken on media reports that the sacred pond of the temple was drying up as nearby cement factories were drawing large amount of ground water through a number of wells in the area.

The court issued directives to the management of Bestway Cement to fill up within a week the pond of Katas Raj, the worship place of Hindu community in Chakwal, besides directing the concerned authorities to take effective precautionary measures for controlling environmental pollution in the area and submit a report.

The court also directed Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) chairman to submit a detailed report before it regarding the measures taken for the repair of the Katas Raj temple. It also directed the authorities concerned to provide details of how much land was allotted to the factories in the area.

The CJ said that verdicts are on the record mentioning that the state will be run collectively by the judiciary, the legislature and the executive.

In pursuance of an earlier order, seeking an explanation on the decaying state of Sri Ram and Hanuman temples, ETPB Siddiqul Farooq in his reply informed the court that the statues were removed from the temples for fears of reprisal attacks following demolition of Babri Mosque in India in 1992.

The court was informed that the said temples were under the control of Archeology Department and no worship is being done there. The court was further informed that Archeology Department has been controlling Katas Raj complex since 2006, and guidelines have been inscribed in the temples about where worship is made.

During the course of hearing, a representative of Bestway Cement told the court that they have hired Babar Sattar as counsel for pleading the case but he could not reach, seeking some time. The CJ observed that as for as he knows, the SC has not yet granted licence to Babar Sattar.

On court query, the representative also told the court that the factory’s head was in London, thus he also could not appear. To another court query, she stated that the factory was using approximately 80, 000 gallons of water per day.

The CJ questioned who has given the right to the factory to use such a high quantity of underground water, adding that the factory had caused high damages to the environment of Chakwal district.

“Don’t make the lives of people more miserable on the excuses of exporting cement and contributing to the foreign reserves,” he remarked while addressing the representative. The court directed the company to fill the pond of Katas Raj within a week at any cost and submit a compliance report.

It directed the Punjab government to submit a detailed report containing the conditions, under which establishment of the cement factories was allowed in the area. The court also sought reports on the environmental pollution being caused by the factories in the area.

During the hearing, Assistant Advocate General of Punjab informed the court that Bestway Cement factory had illegally installed a turbine, which was sucking huge quantity of underground water.

The court then directed that the illegal turbine be closed down immediately and compliance report be submitted. The court also directed that a comprehensive report on the factories’ impact on the environment in Zone ‘B’ be submitted till next hearing.

The chief justice said that the cement factories will not be allowed to operate at the cost of people’s health and observed that the court could order to close down all such factories for survival of environment and the human life.