SC orders lodging for Margalla Towers’ affectees
By Zulfiqar Ahmad

ISLAMABAD—A four-member Supreme Court bench Friday directed the Capital Development Authority (CDA) chairman to provide reasonable accommodation to 140 affected families of Margalla Towers apartment blocks that collapsed due to earthquake on October 8.
The court issued notice to respondents, including the construction company that had built the building, and adjourned the case until October 28.
The bench also directed the Inspector General of Police, Islamabad, to appear before the court on the next date of hearing and submit a report regarding steps that have been taken or being taken to arrest persons who had sold these flats as mentioned in the FIR No. 101 registered against them at Sahlimar Police Station, Islamabad.
Those made respondents in a petition filed Margalla Towers residents through counsel Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada are CDA through its Chairman, Chaudhry Construction Company Associates, Architects, Engineers and Developers, Ginza Centre, 104-W, Blue Areas F/7-G-7, Jinnah Avenue, Islamabad, and Muhammad Ramzan Khokar, Managing Director C/o CCC Associates. The bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan and Justice Hamid Ali Mirza heard arguments of the counsel of the petitioner in detail and admitted the constitutional petition for regular hearing.
The bench restrained CDA from transferring the Margalla Towers plot and said if necessary the court would hold day-to-day hearing. Hamid Khan, Salman A.Butt, Malik Muhammad Qayyum, Muhammad Waqar Rana, A. Q. Halepota and Hadi Shakeel also appeared before the court as counsels of the petitioners.
The Court directed all the petitioners’ counsels to submit record related to earthquake zones. Muhammad Nawaz Advocate appeared before the court as counsel of the CDA and sought time to file reply to the petition along with all relevant documents.
The CDA counsel informed the court that the Authority had already established camps for 140 affected families who were displaced on account of the earthquake. The court said the record placed before it indicates that the occupants (owner/tenants) of flats located in all the five blocks of Margalla Towers had paid considerable amount for the purchase of flats and some of them had been paying quite handsome rents.
“Now CDA is responsible to provide alternate accommodation till the time the building is reconstructed or other arrangements are made,” the court observed. According to a short order passed by the bench, the accommodation to be provided by the CDA should be equivalent to the status of damaged flats. If this was not possible then the Chairman CDA should constitute a committee within three days to asses the rent of flats and the same should be paid to owner/tenants of Margalla Towers’ flats on regular monthly basis to make their own arrangements.
The bench directed the CDA to place complete record of the Margalla Towers, indicating the ownership or lease documents of the plot from allotment to completion of the project, including record of the construction company.
The CDA was also directed to produce a list of officers/officials who remained involved in this project from allotment of the plot to approval of plan as well as construction and supervision.
The CDA will also produce a list of officers/officials who issued certificates about quality of construction from time to time expressing their satisfaction with the work.
In addition, a complete list of occupants of Margalla Towers if available in record along with assessment report if completed till next date of hearing will also be submitted. The CDA was asked to complete assessment report about damages suffered by the occupants.
The court noted with anguish that 49 persons had reportedly died and a substantial number were injured in the Magalla Towers collapse.
The Supreme Court had earlier fixed hearing of the case for October 25 at Lahore but later advanced it.
The petitioners have prayed to the apex court to issue directions to the respondents to compensate them and other affectees.
They also prayed that those responsible should also be ordered to pay jointly and severally punitive damages for the loss of life and injuries.
The petitioners have requested for appointment of a committee of architects and engineers to review building laws and suggest necessary amendments.
A report was prepared by Engineer Haris Aqil of University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore and Engineer Amir Hayat University of Engineering and Technology Peshawar after carrying out inspection of Margalla Towers from October 13 to 15, 1998. The inspection was carried out on the request of Margalla Towers Islamabad Residents Society (MATRIS).
That technical report, which is part of the documents submitted to the court, had said that the concrete work was poor and defective.