ISLAMABAD: The city managers on Monday decided to put on hold the permission granted to Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Aleem Khan’s housing society to use the civic agency’s land for an access road.

Last year, the CDA board had allowed Park View Society to construct the main road to the society on the civic agency’s land. However, the CDA board on Monday decided to stop the use of land for the ‘access road’ until the matter is decided by court.”

“We have decided that access to the society should be sealed pending adjudication,” said a participant of the meeting.

Recently, Islamabad High Court while hearing a petition asked CDA Chairman Amer Ali Ahmed as well as Mr Khan’s counsel Dr Babar Awan to justify permission granted to the private housing society for utilising the acquired land and “satisfy this court that it is not a case which ought to be referred to NAB”.

The IHC assigned the CDA chairman the task to probe the matter and submit a report.

The chairman, however, sought time to enable the CDA board to examine the legality of the matter.

Meanwhile, the CDA board also adopted a recent decision of the federal cabinet for starting the stuck-up development activity in the light of an interim report prepared by a commission formed for the revision of Islamabad’s master plan. The board also took up a plaza owned by a former PPP senator in G-6.

The board was informed that the plot was allotted for the construction of a wedding hall in 1994 but in 2012 the CDA allowed its conversion into a commercial plaza. But the allottee did not deposit the commercialisation fee.

Published in Dawn, December 3rd, 2019