Proceedings in the One Constitution Avenue case at the Islamabad High Court (IHC) were postponed on Wednesday as the division bench was unavailable, leading to the cancellation of the scheduled hearings for the day.
A two-judge panel consisting of Justice Muhammad Azam Khan and Justice Inam Amin Minhas was set to review several intra-court appeals, including petitions to add new sub-lease holders of apartments originally linked to PTI founder Imran Khan to the litigation.
The case involves sub-lease holders of One Constitution Avenue who have obtained stay orders from the court to prevent their eviction. Due to the adjournment, the interim protection against their removal has been automatically extended until the next hearing.
Among the petitioners are Shahid Naseer, who holds a sub-lease for an apartment in Tower C initially associated with Imran Khan, and Zainab Ahsan, daughter of senior lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan. They have submitted applications requesting the inclusion of five sub-lease holders as appellants, asserting that they legally acquired their apartments and are directly impacted by the case.
Meanwhile, the federal government has formed a committee led by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar to examine the issue further.
Court documents reveal that the Capital Development Authority (CDA) had previously revoked the lease granted for the project. This cancellation was subsequently upheld in principle by IHC Chief Justice Sardar Sarfraz Dogar, who deemed the cancellation lawful.
The sub-lease holders continue to seek judicial safeguards, emphasizing the need to protect their property rights as the case progresses. Interim orders preventing eviction remain in place until the matter is heard again.
