If the government or the defense department did not have the funds, the owners should have been informed before taking possession, Faisalah. Photo: File
Islamabad: The Supreme Court ordered the Ministry of Defense to pay the leased 3413 acres of land.
The Supreme Court dismissed the Defense Ministry’s plea in the case of returning 3,413 acres of land after 50 years of occupation to avoid paying compensation to the landowners.
The land acquisition process started in 1977 and was delayed due to the incompetence and negligence of the appellant (Ministry of Defence). Since then the landlords have been struggling to get their legitimate rights.
In an 11-page judgment written by Justice Shahid Waheed, dismissing the Defense Ministry’s plea, it said that on the facts, the law could not condone the appellant’s indifference and sanction the relinquishment of the land, Section 48. Under no circumstances can the notification dated 7th October, 2019 be held to be valid but a ploy on the part of the appellant to cheat the landlords, does not entitle the Government to treat its citizens in such a manner.
A three-member bench headed by Justice Muneeb Akhtar rejected the relinquishment of the land. obtained a lease for the range, it was then intended to be acquired under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, and thus a notification under section 4 was issued on 13th May, 1977 under which the proceedings continued for 22 years.
The award was announced on 21 April 1999, ushering in another round of trials and tribulations for the landowners, leading to protracted litigation for the proper determination of the said land, culminating in the Supreme Court’s 15 The judgment dated February 2018 fixed compensation at Rs 12,000 per marla with 6 per cent interest and 15 per cent compulsory charges.
The court said that the landowners could not be left alone in the trouble. The court said that if the government or the defense department did not have the funds, they should have told the landowners before taking possession. The court dismissed the defense ministry’s plea.
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