SHC seeks comments on plea against construction of hospital on land for sports complex

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has issued notices to the Orangi Town project director, District West administration and others on a petition against the construction of a private hospital on an amenity plot meant for a sports complex in Orangi.

The petitioner, Naureen Nazli, submitted in the plea that a 2,000-square-yard plot, ST-4, situated in Orangi Town Sector B/14 was allotted for the purpose of a sports complex in 2002 in the name of Shuhada-e-Mashriqi Pakistan and a proper construction work was carried out by then city government.

She submitted that officials of District West deliberately and intentionally sold out such amenity plot to a non-government organisation that had started the construction of a hospital on it. She submitted that several applications had been forwarded to concerned officials for redress of the grievance but no action was taken by officials of District West and the project director of Orangi Town.

The high court was requested to cancel the allotment of the plot for a hospital as the plot was meant for the purpose of sports complex, and direct the district administration to remove all kinds of encroachment on it.

A division bench headed by Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi after a recent preliminary hearing of the petition issued notices to the Orangi Town project director and others, calling their comments within two weeks.

Meanwhile, the SHC directed the Karachi Development Authority and the project director of the Lines Area Rehabilitation Project (LARP) to file the list of vacant plots available in the LARP in a land allotment case. The direction came on a petition of woman who sought compensation and alternate plot in LARP which was acquired by the government functionaries in 80s.

The petitioner submitted that her father late Mian Mohammad was the owner of a 200-square-yard plot in Jacob Line, which was acquired by the LARP in 1980s without giving compensation or alternative plot.