Barrister Ali Zafar, counsel for Bahria Town, has a filed petition before Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) seeking transfer of Bahria Town and Punjab Forest Department’s land dispute to some other bench to which Justice Jawwad S Khawaja is not part, besides delisting it for present hearing and fixing it for hearing after April 1.
The counsel pleaded, “Land dispute between Bahria Town and Punjab Forest Department is pending adjudication in subordinate court. A petition was filed in the Supreme Court (SC), seeking adjournment in this case. You as CJP had accepted the plea and allowed general adjournment till March 24 to April 1 this year.”
He pleaded that an SC bench headed by Justice Khawaja not only took up the case for hearing on March 25 but also did not accept the plea from the counsel for adjournment of hearing of the case despite the fact that this adjournment was allowed by the CJP.
“Justice Khawaja not only gave several observations in this case but also granted interim relief which can prove detrimental to Bahria Town in the final decision of the case by the courts.”
“Justice Jawwad S Khawaja has fixed the case for hearing today despite the fact that adjournment was allowed by the CJP. We want this case be de-listed and be fixed with some other bench for hearing.”
The counsel said the fundamental right enshrined in Article 10-A of the Constitution guarantees that for determination of his civil right and obligations a person shall be entitled to a fair trial and due process, which is being infringed in the instant case.
Every system and procedure is meant to ensure justice to the parties, he added, saying that hearing of M/S Bahria Town through their counsel is an established mode of dispensation of justice, which has also been denied to the M/S Bahria Town in this case.
The counsel said, “It is an established principle of law that justice must not only be done but seen to be done. The CM of the M/s Bahria Town in which the M/S Bahria Town is challenging the very jurisdictional basis in law under which the court is conducting these post decision proceedings and wherein the M/S Bahria Town is submitting that this honorable court doesn’t have any jurisdiction in law to direct the respondent to take action against the M/S Bahria Town without a fair trial which is pending and has to be first decided, yet the honorable judge Justice Jawad S Khawaja again and again directed and threatened the officer concerned of the government to take action against M/S Bahria Town otherwise his service may be harmed. This has created reasonably in the mind to dismiss/ has effective negated the CM filed by the M/s Bahria Town and is proceeding with the case regardless.”
He further prayed that forest department Punjab has started proceedings for retrieving the land under the orders of Justice Khawaja and is visiting the private homes to retrieve the land.
He said that Justice Khawaja has already issued directives to Forest Department to initiate proceedings therefore; he will not withdraw his decision. Therefore, justice cannot be expected from him. Therefore, the case be put up for hearing before other bench.
He submitted that Justice Khawaja was also heading a bench of this court which had dealt with a dispute between Malik Riaz Hussain, the then chief executive of M/S Bahria Town and Dr Arsalan Iftikhar, which was reported as PLD 2012 SC 664 in which the court held that it is fundamental right of every person to have a fair trial and hence refused to deal with the case of Dr Arsalan Iftikhar on this basis.
In the last, he prayed to the court that above mentioned case may graciously be de-listed today and be fixed after April 1.
