KARACHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed displeasure over the provincial authorities for allowing the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) to raise constructions on the Hindu Gymkhana premises.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice Gulzar Ahmed observed that how constructions could be allowed on the premises of a heritage building, adding that the officials concerned of the Sindh Building Control Authority and others be removed from their jobs for granting such a permission and facilitating Napa regarding the construction.

An additional advocate general informed the bench that the heritage site was leased to Napa for 30 years in September 2005 and added that the Sindh High Court had also handed down a judgement in favour of Napa as well.

Justice Ahmed observed that the constructions on the premises of heritage building was a very serious issue and said that why an appeal had not be filed against the high court order.

The bench was hearing a petition filed by the Shree Ratheshawar Maha Dev Welfare in 2014 through Advocate Neel Keshav seeking ban on construction on the premises of Hindu Gymkhana.

The petitioner also contended that the heritage site belonged to the Hindu community of Karachi before the partition as the gymkhana building was established for the promotion of social and religious activities of Hindus, but the government took it over as an evacuee trust property after the partition.

Therefore, the petitioner argued that a directive may be issued to Napa to vacate the building and hand it over to the Hindu community.

Bail of revenue official dismissed

The same bench dismissed on Thursday the pre-arrest bail application of an official of the revenue department in illegal allotment of land.

Tapedar Mohammad Younus through his counsel moved bail application and after hearing both sides the court dismissed the plea.

A prosecutor of National Accountability Bureau argued that the applicant had made illegal entries to the record about unlawful allotment of around 35 acres of land.

The personnel of NAB arrested the suspect after the dismissal of his bail.

SHC sets aside conviction order

The Sindh High Court on Thursday set aside a conviction handed down to an elderly man by a trial court in a murder case.

A sessions court had sentenced Abdul Waheed, said to be over 70-year-old, to 10 years in prison in September 2016 for killing his neighbour Nawab Zaheer in September 2011 within the remit of the Brigade police station along with his three absconding sons over a petty dispute.

However, he challenged the conviction order before the SHC and after hearing arguments of both sides and examining the record, a two-judge bench of SHC headed by Chief Justice Ahmed Ali M. Shaikh allowed the appeal.

Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2018