A single bench of Lahore High Court at Rawalpindi has asked the Capital Development Authority not to "confirm the proceedings" of its intended auction of a site for raising a new five-star hotel in Islamabad until a decision on complaints of irregularities in the matter is taken by the Court. The action was taken by Justice Muhammad Muzammal Khan on Monday on a constitutional petition moved by Naeem Bokhari for Hashwani Hotels Limited questioning the procedures adopted by the Authority.
The site, to go on auction on Wednesday, is located near the Convention Centre here and is quite close to another similar facility owned by the Aga Khan.
The site was originally an inverted L shaped plot but was later changed to a rectangle. It was for raising a hotel containing 500 rooms with 20 VVIP suites but was later reduced to 300 rooms which would also include 20 'Presidential suites' and service apartments.
A pre-bid meeting held in July last was attended by pre-qualified parties including Pakistan Kuwait Investment Company and Arabian Construction Company.
The petition seeks directions to the Authority to be specific about the terms and conditions of the project and also the size of the hotel which, the complainants, said were "vague and fluid".
The Authority, the petitioner claimed was "flexible about the height of the project, the size of the covered area as well as the number of basements under the plinth level" and also specifications for a parking area.
Under the revised scheme advised to the intending developers, area for a shopping arcade had also been deleted.
These changes were described by the petitioner as "arbitrary and drastic" which rendered the working, feasibility and the previous drawings useless.
A date for regular hearing will be fixed after the Authority answers the notice from the High Court.
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