Police were deployed at all entry points to the building and residents were ordered to leave their apartments by midnight.
ISLAMABAD:
Police and district administration on Friday took control of a multi-storey residential building on Constitution Avenue following a ruling by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in a long-running dispute over cancellation of its lease agreement.
Police teams were deployed at all entry points of the “One Constitution Avenue” building and residents were ordered to leave their apartments by midnight. Several floors were already unoccupied, while the occupants of some units were still moving their belongings.
The move followed the court’s decision a day earlier, prompting immediate administrative action on the ground.
The case centers on the cancellation of the project’s lease by the Capital Development Authority (CDA). The BNP company had challenged the decision before the IHC, requesting the restoration of the lease contract.
IHC Chief Justice Sarfraz Dogar announced a short order dismissing the petition against cancellation of the lease and removing related applications filed by the apartment owners.
The residents argued that the CDA had approved the construction plan and issued a no-objection certificate (NOC), following which the apartments were purchased. They maintained that the dispute was between the CDA and the developer and should be resolved between the interested parties.
Read: SC petition challenges transfer of IHC judges
The project originally arises from a 13.5 acre plot allotted to the BNP Group after an auction on March 9, 2005 for Rs 4,880 crore. Although the possession was handed over the same year after an initial payment of Rs 800 million, BNP has so far paid Rs 1.02 billion, while the remaining Rs 3.85 billion can be recovered in installments until 2026.
In July 2016, the CDA canceled the lease, citing multiple violations. The decision was upheld by the IHC in 2017, which also declared the conversion of a five-star hotel project into luxury apartments illegal. However, the Supreme Court overturned that ruling in early 2019 and ordered the developer to pay Rs 17.5 billion in installments over eight years.
The CDA argued that BNP failed to meet its financial obligations after 21 years, maintaining that full ownership was conditional on payment of 100% of the cost of the land. Of the total liability of Rs 17.5 billion, only Rs 2.9 billion (about 16.6%) has reportedly been paid.
The complex is reported to include apartments owned by several prominent figures, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan, Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, Shandana Gulzar Aurangzeb, former minister Burjees Tahir, former caretaker prime minister Nasirul Mulk and Kashmala Tariq.
