LAHORE: After the Punjab government failed to justify the urgency being shown in acquiring people’s properties for the project envisaging an elevated expressway from Gulberg to Motorway-II worth over Rs50 billion, the Lahore High Court scrapped the project.
A full bench of the LHC also set aside all notifications issued by the government under Land Acquisition Act 1894. It ruled there is no urgency for the project for which Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval was also not granted by the Environment Protection Department before starting the construction work.
Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah who headed the full bench observed that the court would issue guidelines for the government to follow before launching a development project. The petitioners had submitted that the government imposed an emergency like situation and started acquisition of their land under Section 17 of the Land Acquisition Act by demolishing their house to execute over Rs50 billion expressway project. They said the government had not conveyed them the reasons behind this urgency. They asked the court to set aside the project and the land acquisition.
