ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday disposed of the contempt petition against former interior minister Sheikh Rashid and MNA Rashid Shafique on the assurance of Additional Advocate General (AAG) Punjab that the Pakistan Girls Guide Association (PGGA) will not be dispossessed from the land allotted to them in 1957.
A two-judge bench, headed by Justice Ijazul Ahsan, on Wednesday heard the contempt petition of the PGGA.
AAG Qasim Chohan assured the Court that the land allotted to the Girls Guide Association would not be vacated, adding if the Association would use any other land then action will be taken.
Nafisa Sikander Malhi, provincial commissioner PGGA in April 2019 had filed a contempt petition against Sheikh Rashid, MNA Rashid Shafique and District Commissioner Officer (DCO) under Article 204 of the Constitution read with Section 5 of Contempt of Court Ordinance, 2003, for disregarding Supreme Court order dated 19-11-18.
Divisional Girl Guides House, Punjab, constructed on land measuring 10 kanal and 12 marlas, at Asghar Mall Road, Rawalpindi, was taken over by the PGGA on a 99-year lease. The lease was executed between the PGGA and the Municipal Committee, Rawalpindi on 14-02-1957. The PGGA had paid the lease money up to 2005.
Former chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar in November 2018 had taken suo motu notice of interference with and non-renewal of the lease to the PGGA. He had directed the Municipal Committee, Rawalpindi, to immediately issue a challan for the remaining amount of the lease money within a week without fail.
The petitioner had complained that despite the apex court order dated 19-11-2018 the Municipal Committee, Rawalpindi, which was bound to immediately issue a challan for the remaining amount of lease money/rent for the property failed to do so.
Nafisa, therefore, had filed a contempt petition against Sheikh Rasheed and his nephew Rashid Shafique that they were pressurizing the DCO, Rawalpindi to evict the PGGA from the property before 03-05-2019, as the Zaccha Baccha Hospital was to be inaugurated by the prime minister (Imran Khan) on 03-05-2019.
She explained in her contempt petition that the illegal pressure of Sheikh Rashid and his nephew on the DCO and the provincial officers and the local government for eviction of the PGGA in violation of the lawful rights of the PGGA is a flagrant violation and disregard of the apex court’s order.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022