LHC orders WCLA to renovate rundown houses in Walled City

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Monday directed the Walled City Lahore Authority (WCLA) to start renovation of dilapidated residential buildings inside the walled city from July 22 and also directed the Finance Department to release funds for the purpose.

Justice Ali Akbar Qureshi was hearing a petition questioning dilapidated condition of the residential buildings inside the walled city with an apprehension of roof-collapse incidents during the ongoing monsoon season. Chairman of Planning and Development Department Habib Gillani and other officials of the government were present during the hearing.

Gillani requested the court to allow a three-week time for the release of the funds, however, Justice Qureshi turned down the request and directed the secretary finance to release the required funds by July 20.

The judge directed the WCLA to start renovation work of the rundown houses in the walled city by July 22. Separately, Justice Qureshi sought a report from Auqaf Department about alleged encroachment upon the land of Bibi Pakdaman Shrine.

A citizen filed a petition to this effect and contended that 72-kanal land of the shrine had been encroached upon by constructing shops and homes. He stated that the government should be ordered to recover the illegally occupied land of the shrine and also erect its boundary wall.

The judge directed secretary of the Auqaf department to submit a comprehensive report on the matter. On another petition, the judge sought a report from the chairman of a union council concerned about encroachment of a Christian community’s graveyard in Batapur area.

Petitioner Manzoor Masih pleaded that the Christian community had been living in the area for decades as ancestors were also buried at this land. He said about 100 years ago a piece of land consisting about 11-kanal 16-maral at Mouza Khairay Batapur was allotted to the Christian community for the purposes of graveyard, where the community had been burying their ancestors for decades. The petitioner said the land of the graveyard had been illegally occupied by the family of a known businessman for agricultural purposes depriving the Christian community of their right.

Govt barred from impounding vehicles for polling staff The Lahore High Court on Monday restrained caretaker Punjab government from impounding or engaging vehicles of private owners for its use on polling day.

Private transport companies filed identical petitions pleading that the government had started impounding their vehicles coercively for the purpose of transporting polling staff. The lawyers of the petitioners/companies argued that they did not fall within the definition of public transport but supplied transport services to the employees of private institutions and industries.

They said if the government was not barred from capturing the vehicles of the petitioners a number of private industries would suffer a lot. They asked the court to restrain the government from impounding their vehicles and also order immediate release of the seized vehicles.