IHC issues notice to AG over land acquisition
By Khalid Amin

ISLAMABAD—The Islamabad High Court (IHC) here Tuesday issued notice to Attorney General for Pakistan to appear on April 2 and apprise it about the constitutional provisions regarding land acquisition by the government ministries and departments.
A single-judge bench of Justice Syed Qalbe Hassan heard a writ petition filed by Raja Safeer Ahmed against the Ministry of Defence.
Syed Iftikhar Hussain Gillani, senior advocate of Supreme Court, appearing as counsel for the petitioner, apprised the Bench that the Ministry of Defence through a notification has acquired about 2,000 acres of land near Pakistan Institute for Nuclear Sciences and Technology at Lethrar road.
He said that the step by the concerned authorities was ultra vires of Constitution and it was not permissible under the law of the land.
Such notification, he said, can be issued when a construction near sensitive area pose a hinderance to its functioning.
“But here an owner of the land has been denied of his right to utilize his piece of land,” he added.
Gillani also claimed that this step also brought down the prices of land to bottom resulting in financial losses to the owners of lands in that area.
He elaborated that these laws exist since 1903, but huge construction was done near sensitive installations in and around Rawalpindi.
Raja Mohammad Bashir and Barrister Masroor Shah appearing as Standing Counsels apprised the court that laws did exist to acquire public property and equal compensation had been paid to the affected owners at market prices.
A collector would determine decrease in prices of land if it occurred but surely he would take all the issues into consideration while making compensation, he added.
He said that the concerned collector of land was also bound to issue notice to the people about the mode of compensation.
Justice Syed Qalbe Hassan after hearing both parties issued notice to Attorney General for Pakistan to appear on April 2 and apprise the Court about existing laws.