ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has summoned the Director of Building Control at the Capital Development Authority (CDA) in response to a petition filed against the recent sealing of car showrooms located in the G-8 and G-9 sectors.
Earlier this month, the CDA took action to seal 117 car showrooms, citing their encroachment on parking spaces in various markets.
Challenging this operation and the subsequent sealing of their establishments, the car showroom owners presented their case before the IHC through their legal representative, Advocate Kashif Ali Malik.
Advocate Malik argued in front of Justice Babar Sattar that the petitioners, who are both tenants and owners of commercial premises, are entitled to operate car showrooms by the provisions of the Land Disposal Regulations of 2005.
He emphasized that the regulation of the motor vehicle dealer business falls under the Islamabad Real Estate Agents and Motor Vehicles Dealers (Regulation of Business) Ordinance of 1984, and the authority in charge of such regulation is the Excise and Taxation Office Islamabad, rather than the CDA.
Furthermore, Advocate Malik highlighted that the Islamabad Residential Sector Zoning (Building Control) Regulations of 2019 outline procedures for the disposal of vehicles parked in unauthorized areas.
He argued that while the CDA might raise concerns about vehicles being parked in commercial zones without authorization, this issue doesn’t warrant the sealing of the entire business.
Moreover, he also asserted that such actions violate the Land Disposal Regulations of 2005, as these regulations don’t consider unauthorized parking as a basis for the sealing of business premises.
Advocate Malik also pointed out that the sealing operation was conducted under the authority of the CDA Chairman without due process, and no notices were issued to the petitioners.
In response to the petition, the court has issued notices to the relevant CDA authorities and has requested them to provide detailed comments within 10 days.
Justice Sattar has directed the Director of Building Control at the CDA to personally appear before the court on August 25.
The Director is expected to bring the notices that were issued to the car showrooms, along with the legal basis for the sealing operation.
Source: DAWN
