IHC orders demolition of illegal law chambers

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Tuesday ordered demolition of illegal chambers of lawyers built on a playground in Sector F-8. The verdict was announced by a larger bench, headed by IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah and comprising Justice Aamer Farooq, Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb. A 30-page judgment, written by Chief Justice Athar Minallah, said that the chambers were "illegal, void and without jurisdiction and authority”. The court noted the record showed that office-bearers of the Islamabad District Bar had “allotted plots to lawyers for construction of private chambers in 2017, but the bar had not obtained any permission or authorisation from authorities”.

The court ordered the bar members to clear the illegal construction and restore the playground for public use. The order states the ground is situated next to a commercial area where the administration of the Islamabad Capital Territory had rented privately-owned buildings more than four decades ago for establishing the district courts. "The playground was encroached upon and construction has also been made by a few enrolled layers for building their private chambers," it observed.

The order says people from the neighbouring buildings use the playground for unauthorised parking. The court also ordered the federal government to make arrangements for a football tournament on March 23 to pay tribute to the greatest lawyer of the subcontinent and founder of the nation, Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah. "The government has earmarked a separate five-acre plot in Mauve Area so that Islamabad lawyers could establish facilities for themselves. The federal government should commence and complete the construction of the state-of-the-art complex of district courts without unnecessary delay and must submit a progress report to the court registrar on the first of each month," it said. The court also ordered action against “public functionaries” which failed to take notice of the encroachment.

The petitioner, Shehnaz Butt, told the court that the encroachment by enrolled lawyers and occupants of adjoining commercial buildings had started in 2013. She asserted that the general public, particularly young people, had been deprived of their right to enjoy the benefits of the playground.

Last week, a large number of lawyers had attacked and vandalised the Islamabad High Court after their chambers were demolished by the CDA. They besieged the chamber of Justice Minallah and held him hostage for three hours.