2022 S C M R 528
2022 S C M R 528
(a) Constitution of Pakistan—
—-Arts. 184(3) & 190—Administrative Committee of the Supreme Court, functions of—Implementation of directions/orders of the Supreme Court passed in its jurisdiction under Art. 184(3) of the Constitution—Nothing in law prevents the Supreme Court to hold administrative meetings with concerned agencies/functionaries to ensure that orders passed in public interest are being implemented—Executive functions of the Supreme Court inter alia include implementation of its orders and require executive functionaries to do so as per requirements of Art. 190 of the Constitution—If a judgment of the Court is not executed without reason, it has the effect of stagnating the law and in effect, impeding the system of administration of justice—For this reason the Supreme Court oversees its proceedings and their end result, especially those under Art. 184(3) of the Constitution owing to their nature and, due to the questions of public importance involved therein—As such, the directions issued in the Administrative Committee meeting of the Supreme Court are meant to oversee proper and timely implementation.
(b) Sindh Regulation and Control (Use of Plots and Construction of Buildings) Ordinance (VIII of 2002)—
—-S. 5—Karachi Building and Town Planning Regulations, 2002, Regln. 18-14.4—Constitution of Pakistan, Art. 184(3)—Matter concerning marriage halls on Main Korangi Road, Karachi, constructed illegally on residential plots and encroached land—Directions issued by the Supreme Court for demolition of such marriage halls—Applicants/interveners (owners of marriage halls) were unable to show the Court anything from the record which could establish that the plots/Marriage halls were regularized/converted after due process and in accordance with law and the applicable rules and regulations—Fact that the applicants/interveners did not have their regularization letters was enough to hold that the marriage halls were illegally constructed upon residential plots and were liable to be demolished—Marriage halls built upon residential plots and encroached lands were liable to be demolished in terms of orders of the Supreme Court and the conversions (of use of land) undertaken were liable to be reverted back to their original residential use.
Admittedly the land in question is residential in nature. The only claim of the applicants/interveners is that they had acquired necessary permissions/NOCs from the housing society/ authorities before they started constructing the marriage halls. The applicants/interveners have admitted that they did not receive any letters of regularization in respect of their properties stating that the same had been regularized as marriage halls or, that their residential land was converted to commercial land
Applicants/interveners relied upon an advertisement/notification issued by the Sindh Building Control Authority inviting the public to make applications for conversion of their residential plots into commercial/marriage halls. However, the applicants/interveners did not bring any material on record to show that their plots fulfilled the conditions and minimum qualifying area of plots prescribed in the said notification.
Applicants/interveners knew that their buildings/marriage halls were wrongly built and so, attempted to get the same regularized. Such fact is sufficient to hold that the marriage halls were illegally built on residential plots, in violation of clear orders of the Supreme Court which provide that the Master Plan of Karachi city cannot be changed and all changes made thereto must be reverted and illegal buildings demolished.
Counsel for the applicants/interveners argued that the land on which the marriage halls were built was barren land with no habitation or residential/commercial construction in sight, and that they were pressurized by the housing societies to construct on the land and as a consequence thereto, the applicants/interveners constructed marriage halls to save the land from encroachers. Contrary to such stance the written synopsis presented by the counsel for the applicants/interveners mentioned about the economic utility of marriage halls and the growing need for a change in town planning. As such, the fact that the applicants/interveners conceded that the growing economic need of marriage halls needed to be met shows that they did not merely construct marriage halls upon the land in question to save the same from encroachers. This is further established from the fact that the applicants/interveners actively approached their respective housing societies to acquire NOCs so that their lands could be converted for use from residential to commercial. This too was done after paying meagre fees in comparison to the price of commercial properties in the area(s). It is for this reason that most of the residential plots in Karachi city were ordered to be reverted to their original form by the Supreme Court, because residential properties were indiscriminately being converted to commercial properties without due regard to fundamental questions and regard for town planning, environmental impact, stress on basic amenities and availability of basic infrastructure and services.
Even otherwise, the allotment letters given to the applicants/interveners by the housing societies did not permit them to build marriage halls on their plots. The applicants/interveners could have complained to the Registrar of Cooperative Housing Societies regarding any pressure exerted against them. However, no such complaint was on the record. There is nothing on the record to show that any FIR or complaint was registered to bring to the notice of the concerned authorities that there were any encroachers operating in the area who were trying to occupy the land of applicants/interveners prompting them to construct marriage halls. If the applicants/interveners were apprehensive about encroachments, they ought to have approached the concerned authorities so that their legitimate interests were adequately safeguarded.
The applicants/interveners were unable to show the Court anything from the record which could establish that the plots/marriage halls were regularized/converted after due process and in accordance with law and the applicable rules and regulations.
Regulation 18-14.4 of the Karachi Building and Town Planning Regulations, 2002 makes it clear that the applicants/interveners needed to have the regularization letters regarding the marriage halls. The fact that the applicants/interveners did not have their regularization letters is enough to hold that the marriage halls were illegally constructed upon residential plots and are liable to be demolished
The marriage halls built upon residential plots and encroached lands are liable to be demolished in terms of orders of the Supreme Court and the conversions (of use of land) undertaken are liable to be reverted back to their original residential use.