By Asif Naveed
ISLAMABAD (MNN); The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday overturned a 2022 judgment that had declared the Pakistan Naval Farms and Pakistan Navy Sailing Club, located along Rawal Lake, illegal.
The IHC division bench also set aside orders directing the demolition of the sailing club and the initiation of misconduct and criminal proceedings against former naval chief Admiral (retd) Zafar Mahmood Abbasi and other officers.
A division bench comprising Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas and Justice Shahrukh Arjumand allowed intra-court appeals filed against the earlier judgment delivered by the then chief justice of the Islamabad High Court, Justice Athar Minallah.
The bench further nullified directions issued to the Auditor General of Pakistan to assess the alleged financial loss to the national exchequer and recover the amount from officials found responsible.
The court also struck down the earlier declaration that the transfer of Naval Farms to the Pakistan Navy was illegal, as well as directions concerning the transfer of the land in the name of the headquarters office.
The appeals had been filed by the Ministry of Defence, former naval chief Admiral (retd) Zafar Mahmood Abbasi and other affected parties challenging the 2022 single-bench verdict.
During the hearing, counsel for the federation and the Ministry of Defence, Sardar Ahmed Jamal Sukhera, argued that the original petition filed by Zeenat Salim was primarily related to notices issued by Pakistan Naval Farms over alleged violations of building bylaws.
He told the court that in 2020, the Directorate of PN Farms had informed the Capital Development Authority (CDA) that Naval Farms was required to comply with building bylaws under the no-objection certificate issued by the civic authority.
According to the counsel, notices were subsequently issued to residents over alleged violations, while the CDA was also requested to take appropriate action.
He said the Naval Farms administration had later informed all residents that CDA building bylaws would be implemented with immediate effect.
Sukhera argued that these steps had already been taken in 2020, two years before the single-bench judgment was delivered, and that the main grievance raised in the petition had therefore been addressed.
He contended that the subsequent judgment contained findings against the armed forces that were not supported by evidence available on record.
The counsel also cited Supreme Court precedents, arguing that courts should avoid deciding matters beyond what is necessary to resolve the dispute before them.
He further challenged the maintainability of the petition after amendments were allowed to include objections regarding the existence of the sailing club.
According to Sukhera, public-interest litigation could not be maintained where the petitioner had a personal interest in the matter, claiming that the record indicated such an interest in this case.
In another appeal, he argued that the earlier judgment had been delivered in violation of the principles of natural justice, due process and the right to a fair trial.
He submitted that more than 100 members of the sailing club were directly affected by the judgment, but none of them had been issued notices or included as necessary parties in the proceedings.
The counsel also pointed out that no notice had been issued to a respondent in a petition filed by Nasir Ali, arguing that the judgment was legally unsustainable.
Former naval chief Admiral (retd) Zafar Mahmood Abbasi also presented additional evidence before the court in support of the appeals.
After hearing arguments and reviewing the available record, the division bench concluded that the principles of natural justice, due process and fair trial had been violated.
The court observed that the affected parties had neither been issued notices nor provided an opportunity to present their case, while necessary parties had also not been included in the proceedings.
Consequently, the division bench allowed the intra-court appeals and set aside the findings and directions contained in the 2022 single-bench judgment.
As a result, the declaration of Pakistan Naval Farms and the Pakistan Navy Sailing Club as illegal, the demolition order for the sailing club, proposed proceedings against the former naval chief and other officers, and directions regarding the assessment and recovery of alleged losses to the national exchequer have all been nullified.
Ashtar Ausaf, Sardar Ahmed Jamal Sukhera and Abdul Wahid Qureshi represented the appellants, while the additional attorney general, assistant attorney general and counsel for the CDA appeared on behalf of the federation and other respondents.
