PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has instructed the Pakistan Housing Authority Foundation (PHAF) and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Housing Authority (KPPHA) to provide a detailed response to a petition concerning the delayed land acquisition and development work initiation for a government housing scheme in the Surezai area.
The court, consisting of Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Syed M Attique Shah, has requested the two housing bodies to furnish information on the project survey, land acquisition process, and the granting of plot and house possession to allottees.
According to sources, the court’s directions were issued during the hearing of a joint petition filed by over 100 plot allottees.
The petitioners have sought the court’s declaration that the respondents, including PHAF and KPPHA, have deceived the public by accepting millions of rupees from them for the PHA Residencia housing project without providing land possession and delaying development work.
The petitioners have requested the court to order the respondents to promptly hand over plots or houses to them.
Additionally, they have urged the court to direct the respondents to provide updates on the project’s progress, as no visible progress has been observed on the project site despite making down payments and paying installments over the past three years.
The respondents named in the petition include the federal housing and works secretary, the KP government through the housing secretary, PHAF chief executive officer and director (land and estate), and the KPPHA director-general.
Advocate Rahat Ali appeared on behalf of the petitioners, while Imran Khan Matta and Sabauddin Khattak represented PHAF and KPPHA, respectively.
Ali highlighted that the PHA Residencia Peshawar project was initiated in 2019 with a promise to provide possession of the grey structure of houses to the petitioners and other allottees, who primarily belong to low-income groups, within three years.
However, the failure to acquire land reflects the respondents’ lack of interest in the project, according to the lawyer.
He also emphasized that the project was a joint venture between PHAF and KPPHA, as per the memorandum of understanding signed on December 11, 2019.
They decided to launch the scheme in the Surezai area of Peshawar, with promises of providing affordable houses to the allottees.
The lawyer mentioned that special quotas were reserved for government employees and private individuals, and successful draws were conducted for the project, followed by the required down payments for different categories.
However, the project has remained unimplemented for the past three years.
The lawyers representing the respondents assured that the relevant survey has already been completed, and the government will acquire possession of the required land shortly.
Source: DAWN
