A legal battle that once put Pakistan Naval Farms and Naval Sailing Club under intense scrutiny took a turn as Islamabad High Court overturned the key orders from the 2022 judgment, bringing significant relief to the former naval chief and changing the course of the long-running controversy.
Islamabad High Court bench comprising Justice Inam Amin Minhas and Justice Shahrukh Arjumand overturned previous judgment ordering the demolition of the Naval Sailing Club on the banks of Rawal Lake, declaring Pakistan Naval Farms illegal and directing misconduct and criminal proceedings against former Naval Chief Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi.
IHC accepted intra-court appeals filed by the Ministry of Defence and Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi, setting aside the 2022 judgment delivered by a single-member bench headed by then-Chief Justice Athar Minallah. The latest ruling also nullifies orders concerning the alleged financial loss to the national exchequer. The court struck down the direction requiring the Auditor General of Pakistan to estimate the loss and recover the amount from officials allegedly involved in the projects.
The earlier finding that declared the transfer of land in the name of Pakistan Navy Headquarters illegal has also been overturned.
During the intra-court appeals, the appellants argued that the President of Pakistan had approved the acquisition of land for a welfare-oriented housing scheme. According to their submissions, Bahria Foundation initially purchased around 2,400 kanals for Naval Farms in the early 1990s. The land was subsequently transferred in the name of the Directorate General Welfare.
The appellants maintained that no government funds were used for the acquisition. Instead, money was collected from naval officers to purchase the land. They further argued that agreements had been reached with some landowners under which developed plots were provided in exchange for their land.
The land was initially developed as 20-kanal agricultural farms, while permission was later granted for plots measuring at least four kanals.
2022 Judgment
The controversy dates back to a 2022 ruling in which the IHC’s single bench had declared the Naval Sailing Club illegal and ordered its demolition within three weeks.
The court had also directed authorities to initiate misconduct and criminal proceedings against then-Naval Chief Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi. The same judgment had declared the NOC issued for the Naval Farms illegal and ordered the Secretary of the Cabinet Division to place the decision before the Prime Minister and federal cabinet.
In his 45-page judgment, then-Chief Justice Athar Minallah had held that the Pakistan Navy, or any other state institution, could not use its name for real estate activities.
The judgment had further declared the transfer of land in the name of Pakistan Navy Headquarters unconstitutional and illegal. It had also held that Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi violated his oath by inaugurating what the court had declared to be an illegal building.
The single bench had ordered criminal proceedings against individuals involved in the construction and inauguration of the Naval Sailing Club and directed the competent authorities to ensure action.
It had additionally ordered the Auditor General of Pakistan to conduct a forensic audit of the Naval Farms and Naval Sailing Club, determine any loss caused to the national exchequer and recover the amount from officials held responsible.
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