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ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court observed on Wednesday that though it was not here to make business decisions which should be left to experts, the feasibility of projects needed to ensure that the public purpose was kept in mind.
“All the future bidding projects should keep into account public purpose,” observed a three-judge implementation bench of the Supreme Court that had taken up a case relating to 141-acre Royal Palm Golf and Country Club, Lahore.
The bench, headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial, directed the Pakistan Railways (PR) to complete the feasibility of the desired projects to be built on the land and file it within one month for the court to consider the same.
The court also ordered the appointed audit firm to complete the audit of the club for the remaining years to enable further proceedings to take place.
Completion of feasibility for projects to be built on Royal Palm Golf and Country Club in one month ordered
Barrister Syed Ali Zafar, appearing on behalf of the Mainland Husnain Pakistan Limited (MHPL), former management company of the Royal Palm Golf and Country Club, informed the court that due to the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, the Pakistan Railways had shut down the club altogether.
On the court’s query, the PR submitted a report of the consultant appointed by it in which various business proposals relating to the project were detailed. One of the suggestions was to lease the project with the permission to build apartments on the railway land.
Mr Zafar said that he had not received the report and that he had objections to the report, including that the rebidding had to be done by the PR in accordance with the laws and judgements of the apex court, including the verdict issued in this very case.
According to Barrister Zafar, the PR could not be allowed to convert a green space into a concrete block.
The court allowed all parties to file replies to the consultant’s report.
On July 31, 2019, the PR had informed the Supreme Court that it had taken over on the charge of the club from Messrs Fergusson.
The responsibility of the elite club was assumed by the Ministry of Railways in compliance with the June 28, 2019 SC order in which the apex court had held illegal the agreement on 141 acres of railway land leased out to Maxcorp/MHPL to develop a private elitist club, Royal Palm Golf and Country Club, in Lahore.
In its judgement, the apex court had ordered the MHPL to hand over the land with all its assets and infrastructure back to the PR with a directive that normal activities of the club and its operations would not be impeded in any manner, like dining areas, golf course, gymnasium, sports activities, swimming pools, cinema halls and wedding functions that had already been booked. Such activities would be held as per the booking orders, the Supreme Court had decreed.
The order had also required the chartered accountants A.F. Ferguson and Company to hand over all records and transfer management of the club within a week.
During pre-partition times in 1911, the then provincial government of Punjab had granted a lease in perpetuity of a prime property located on Canal Bank Road, Lahore, to the railways department. The Railways Golf Club was set up on the property with an objective to provide recreational facilities to employees of the railways department. The club consisted of an 18-hole golf course, a swimming pool, a club house and housing accommodation for the lower staff of the railways department.
In 2000, a decision was made to offer the club on commercial lines to interested parties to finance, redesign, develop and manage its operations.
The Supreme Court judgement had come on a 2011 joint petition filed by former minister of state for railways Ishaq Khan Khakwani, now a PTI leader, Dr Mobashir Hassan, one of the founding members of the PPP, as well as the Railways Board.
The dispute revolves around the lease of 141 acres of railway land to the MHPL by the PR allegedly in a non- transparent manner and flagrant violation of settled principles to develop the Rs50 billion Royal Palm Golf and Country Club.