SHEIKHUPURA
Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that the government will challenge the Lahore High Court (LHC) verdict to nullify the $20 billion Ravi Urban Development project in the Supreme Court.
Talking to the media persons at Rakh Jhok Jungle on Friday, the prime minister said that this project is very crucial keeping in view the speedy growth of Lahore city and it will be the second planned city after Islamabad.
He said this time, the case will be presented in a better manner to apprise the honourable court of the significance of the project in view of urban development and civic facilities. The prime minister said that there is a misconception about the Ravi Urban project that it is a housing society. Instead, he said the grand project aims at correcting the faults in the wake of unplanned construction of the city.
He said the $20 billion project would provide employment and encourage foreign investment, adding that already Rs1.5 billion have been received in this regard. He said that wealth creation would help run 40 affiliated industries.
He said the project will also have a positive impact on environment protection and reduce pollution. He said that 20 million trees will be planted in the Rakh Jhok Jungle under this project which will increase the underground water level, besides saving River Ravi as well. He said that the media should create awareness amongst the public about this project.
“We need to set up new cities in view of the growing population, otherwise we will not be able to provide civic facilities to people,” he said. He mentioned that Lahore in near future could face similar civic problems like Karachi as a result of unplanned urban development.
He regretted that the Sindh government did not allow construction at Bundal Island which was also a mega project in line with the planned development of cities.
Earlier, when the Prime Minister reached Lahore on a daylong visit, he was given a briefing regarding the Central Business District at Walton. On this occasion, he met with investors of this mega real estate project.
The Supreme Court a day earlier fixed the Punjab government’s plea against the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) verdict in the Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project (RRUDP) case for Monday (January 31).
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led Punjab government on Wednesday approached the top court seeking the suspension of the LHC’s January 25 order, which declared the project as illegal and ‘unconstitutional’.
“We have not received a detailed decision of Lahore High Court,” Justice Ijaz said, mentioning that petitions can only be heard after a detailed decision of the LHC is received.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Lahore High Court (LHC) declaring the Ravi Urban Development Project unconstitutional, directed the Ravi Urban Development Authority (RUDA) to return money it has acquired for the project to the Punjab government.
Announcing the reserved verdict, Justice Shahid Karim said that RUDA failed to prepare a master plan in accordance with the law. He added that any scheme without a master plan is contrary to the constitution.
The court also declared Section 4 of the Ravi Urban Development Authority (amendment) Ordinance 2021 unlawful and unconstitutional. The mentioned section is contradictory to Article 144 of the Constitution of Pakistan, it said.
“Agricultural land can be acquired only when there is a proper legal framework for it but the land for RRUDP was acquired through a violation of Land Acquisition Act, 1894,” the court remarked. “Lahore and Sheikhupura failed to abide by the law in the land acquisition,” the court said.
