LHC bars caretaker govt from handing over land for corporate farming
Pakistan
Justice Abid Hussain Chattha issued a two-page verdict on Thursday on a petition.
LAHORE (Web Desk) – The Lahore High Court (LHC) has barred the caretaker government of Punjab from handing over more than 45,000 acres of land to Pakistan Army for “corporate agriculture farming”.
Justice Abid Hussain Chattha issued a two-page verdict on Thursday on a petition filed by Ahmad Rafay Alam on March 28 on behalf of Public Interest Law Association of Pakistan.
The caretaker Punjab government had signed an agreement on March 8 with the army under a notification dated Feb 20, 2023.
Justice Chattha barred the caretaker government from extending any “lease of state land” for the above-mentioned purpose as per the government’s notification.
Noting that the points raised by the petitioner “need consideration”, Justice Chattha issued notices to the respondents for May 9 and asked them to submit a response by then.
Notices were also sent to the Attorney-General for Pakistan and Punjab Advocate General Shan Gul.
The petition
The petitioner had named Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman, the Punjab Board of Revenue, the Punjab agriculture secretary, the Punjab forest, wildlife and fisheries secretary, the Punjab irrigation secretary and the Punjab livestock & dairy development secretary among the respondents.
The petitioner requested the court to declare the caretaker government “cannot take major policy decisions” and also declare the Feb 20 notification as “illegal, null and void”.
Citing a letter dated March 10 that was issued to the Punjab Board of Revenue, the petitioner submitted that the “handing over of any and all properties/land by and between the respondents” be declared “illegal, null and void” as well.
He argued that the transfer of land was unlawful because Punjab governor “is not vested with any power to sanction the said notification”, the LHC verdict recalled.
The verdict stated the petitioner — citing Section 230 (functions of caretaker government) of the Election Act 2017 — had said the “mandate and scope of the caretaker government is limited to perform day-to-day functions of the government and is specifically barred to take policy decisions of permanent nature”.
The petition had also contended that the constitutional mandate restricts Army to perform functions of external and internal security and does not extend to “Corporate Agriculture Farming” — the intended purpose as per the government’s notification.
It may be recalled that an agreement was signed between the military, the Punjab government, and private firms dealing with corporate farming.
The military’s land directorate wrote to the Punjab chief secretary, Board of Revenue and secretaries of the agriculture, forest, livestock and irrigation departments for handing over of 42,724 acres land in tehsils Kaloor Kot and Mankera in Bhakkar, 1,818 acres in tehsils Quaidabad and Khushab in Khushab, and 725 acres in tehsil Chichawatni of Sahiwal.
Under the agreement, the Punjab government has to provide the land while the army will utilise its resources and retain the management of the project.
The private sector, on the other hand, is to invest and provide auxiliary support, including the supply of fertilisers, etc.
Military sources had confirmed the development and said that the army was “not taking over the ownership of the land as it will remain the property” of the Punjab government.
