ISLAMABAD : The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Sindh government to get all official residences vacated from illegal occupants within two months. An apex court bench under Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed issued the order while hearing a case pertaining to the illegal allotment of government-owned residences. During the hearing, the Additional Advocate General Sindh told the court that 229 houses in the province are illegally occupied. He said they are being vacated, but the matter has been put on hold due to the pandemic.
The bench directed the provincial government to cancel all illegal allotments and ensure that they are allotted to officials on merit. It further instructed the government to submit a compliance report in the SC at the next hearing. A Capital Development Authority (CDA) lawyer informed the bench that the Inspector General Police (IGP), Islamabad’s residence too was allotted illegally as police have grabbed the CDA’s 200 quarters. At this, the chief justice said the court would take up the issue of illegal occupation of quarters by police at the next hearing. The hearing of the case was adjourned for two months. To this, the Additional Attorney General said only four official residences in the federal capital are the subject of continuing legal disputes and all others had been repossessed. The court subsequently ordered the relevant authorities to cancel all illegal allotments and issue new allotment notifications. The SC also said that a report should be submitted after two months pertaining to the status of illegally occupied government residences.