ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday issued a stay order, stopping work on the Bhara Kahu bypass project till the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) carries out an environmental impact assessment on the project.
IHC Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb issued the stay order on a plea filed by a professor of Quaid-e-Azam University, challenging the Bhara Kaho bypass project.
The counsel for the petitioner said that under the project, a road will pass through the QAU which will cause irreparable loss to the university.
He said that the project was being carried out by cutting down trees. He said that the project was being carried out in violation of the capital’s master plan. The lawyer pleaded to stop work on the project.
The Capital Development Authority (CDA) counsel said that the project has been started with the approval of the Quaid-e-Azam University administration and all other relevant forums.
He said that the university administration has approved giving the land to the CDA. The CDA lawyer said that they took 200 kanals of land from the Quaid-e-Azam University and in return, gave 225 kanals of alternate land to the university.
The court asked if the CDA has possession of the alternate land given to Quaid-e-Azam University.
The CDA lawyer replied the land given to the Quaid-e-Azam University was “free of all defects”.
The CDA lawyer said that Quaid-e-Azam University is a defaulter of more than Rs1 billion. To this, the judge said that “don’t talk like this. The CDA declares anyone defaulter whenever it wanted to do so.
The judge said that if the university is a defaulter, then let’s ask the contractor to pick up the teachers of Quaid-e-Azam University and throw them out.
After doing that, “all of you go to the spot and fence the site of land that is being given to the project,” the judge said.
The CDA counsel said that more valuable land was being given back to Quaid-e-Azam University:
During the hearing, the court asked if no building of the Quaid-e-Azam University was being affected, how the court can issue a stay order.
The court said that it will call the QAU vice-chancellor to inquire if the alternate land given to the QAU by the CDA was acceptable to him. “The decision of the university has to be taken by the administration, not by any individual,” the court said.
The petitioner’s counsel said that trees were being cut under the Bhara Kahu bypass project and the environment was being destroyed.
The court asked if the environmental assessment of the project had been carried out by the Environmental Protection Agency.
The CDA counsel replied that all relevant institutions have approved the bypass project.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the court issued a stay order to stop work on the project until the Pak-EPA carries out the environmental assessment of the project. The IHC also issued a notice to the federal government.
Meanwhile, Pak-EPA Director-General Farzana Altaf told World Echo that the environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the project is under process and will be completed soon. She said that the matter was sub-judice and she cannot comment further on the issue.
