SC seeks Imran's response on Bani Gala estate documents
March 01, 2018
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday gave Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan one week to furnish a response on the documents related to his Bani Gala estate that have been submitted in the apex court.
On Wednesday, Mohammad Umar, a former Bara Kahu union council official, claimed in the Supreme Court that the no-objection certificate submitted in court by Imran related to his Bana Gala residence was never issued by the authority. However, the PTI denied the allegations.
Hearing the case regarding encroachments and environmental degradation in Bani Gala, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Mian Saqib Nisar observed that the court is more concerned with the public health aspect of the case.
He remarked further that they do not want hazardous water to be delivered to the public.
Addressing State Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, who heads the Capital Administration and Development Division, Chief Justice Nisar inquired if the minister has reviewed the filtration of water in the locality.
The additional attorney general informed the court that they will make a film of the area through a drone and submit it in court.
During the hearing, Imran’s counsel denied the media reports regarding the PTI chief's Bani Gala residence having been constructed illegally, to which the chief justice responded that the counsel should deliver this denial outside the court.
The chief justice lamented that the documents were released to the media before they were submitted in court.
Earlier, as the proceedings began, the chief justice admonished Chaudhry for his last night's statement regarding the "apex court’s test".
At the hearing on Feb 22, following the court's earlier directions, Imran's counsel had submitted his Bani Gala estate's building plans in court.
Last year, the Capital Development Authority had informed the apex court that more than 100 structures in Bani Gala, including Imran's residence, are illegal.
The case is based on a suo motu notice which originated from Imran's petition seeking the court's intervention to stem illegal construction and environmental degradation in Bani Gala.
