The Sindh High Court (SHC) has ordered status quo in respect of the allotment of 40 acres of land proposed to be handed over to the Sindh Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (SICVD) for setting up its Karachi centre in Landhi by the provincial government.
The interim order came on a lawsuit of farmers who challenged the allotment of land to the SICVD for the purpose of construction of its head office to accommodate in-patients, out-patients, clinics, doctors’ and nurses’ residences, and administration block in Landhi.
The plaintiffs’ counsel said the SICVD had requested the provincial government for the allotment of 40 acres to construct its head office, for which purpose the agricultural land of the plaintiffs had been identified.
The counsel said the plaintiffs were in possession of the total 96 acres of land for agriculture purposes since the 1980s, and restraining orders had already been passed by the court in respect of the same land.
According to the counsel, the plaintiffs had established themselves as permanent tenants or Haris entitled to permanent holding individually within the parameter laid down by the land reform regulations, viz. 16 acres each, as the subsistence holding and jointly as families of the predecessors in the interest of the plaintiffs.
The court was requested to declare that the plaintiffs are permanent tenants or Haris of the suit property situated at Na-class 376 Deh Phihai in Landhi, and restrain the defendants from disturbing the peaceful possession of the plaintiffs from the suit property in accordance with the law. The counsel also mentioned the photographs on record showing the land is used for agriculture.
After the preliminary hearing of the lawsuit, a single SHC bench headed by Justice Mohammad Faisal Kamal Alam issued notices to the land utilisation secretary, the SICVD, the District Korangi deputy commissioner and others, telling them to file their comments on March 3.
The court in the meantime directed the parties to maintain status quo, with the plaintiffs not to be dispossessed from the suit land. The bench also appointed the court’s Nazir as commissioner for the site’s inspection after serving notices to the defendants.
The court said the Nazir will report on the land’s ownership, possession and status, identifying encroachments, if any, and any other fact necessary to ascertain the dispute and photographs of the suit land and the adjoining vicinities. The bench said the Nazir can also seek assistance from the revenue authorities and the police to carry out the inspection.
