IHC halts eviction of One Constitution Avenue apartment owners 

Islamabad (Web Desk): The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday passed an important interim order restraining the authorities from evicting apartment owners who are sub-lease holders at One Constitution Avenue until further directions are issued.

The decision came from a division bench consisting of Justice Muhammad Azam Khan and Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas, which heard intra-court appeals filed by several prominent figures including former Air Chief Mujahid Anwar Khan, former ICC President Ahsan Mani, former Senate Chairman Wasim Sajjad, and others. The appellants have challenged paragraph 30 of a single bench judgment related to the safeguarding of third-party rights.

Advocates Taimur Aslam and Ali Raza represented the appellants in court, while Kashif Ali Malik appeared on behalf of the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

During the hearing, the CDA’s lawyer raised the objection that the appeals could not be maintained under the law. At this stage, Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas observed, “We will hear the full case later; today we are only considering their request for a stay.”

The bench also questioned whether the issue of apartment owners had ever been properly examined when the matter reached the Supreme Court. The judges further asked how residents were allowed to occupy the building without the issuance of a completion certificate.

justice Muhammad Azam Khan remarked, “Was the CDA sleeping when there was no completion certificate but residents had already started living there?”

The CDA counsel informed the court that the building still had not been granted its completion certificate.

After hearing the arguments, the court directed that no eviction action shall be taken against the apartment owners until further orders from the bench.