Rawalpindi - Students residing in hostels located in residential areas of the federal capital have approached the Supreme Court seeking directives for the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to stop their evictions.

The Supreme Court had ordered the CDA to take action against those who were involved in non-conforming use of residential areas in Islamabad.

Advocate Zulfiqar Ahmed Bhutta on behalf of five male and 37 female students filed an application on Friday, requesting the apex court to implead party in a case relating to commercial usage of residential area in various sectors of Islamabad.

He submitted that all the students are permanent residents of different cities of Pakistan and currently residing in the private hostels situated in various parts of the city.

Bhutta submitted that all these 32 students moved from various vicinities of the country to Islamabad after securing admissions in different educational institutions of the city, adding for the purpose the students opted to live in hostels in the residential areas of federal capital.

He alleged that nightmare for the students started during the current month when CDA officials started to visit their residential hostels and forced them to vacate the places under the orders of apex court.

“It was reported that CDA staff harassed the females in furtherance of forcing them to vacate their hostels”, the petition said. Bhutta said the basic purpose of any municipal law is to save the residents of any area within their municipal limits from any nuisance which could be the reason of commercial activities in the residential area.

He added that the fact is that the students residing in the premises in question as tenants as well as paying guests for sole purpose of getting education which does not fall under the definition of nuisance.

Buhtta said, “Section 81 of the Islamabad Capital Territory Bylaws 1969 reads as under; Nuisance includes any act, omission, place or thing which causes or is likely to cause injury, danger, annoyance or offence to the sense of sight, smell or hearing or which is or may be dangerous to life or injurious to health or property.”

He said the constitution does not allow expelling these students from these hostels otherwise it would be abuse of process of law. 

He further said that the Constitution provides guarantee regarding fundamental rights including equality of status and opportunities before law, social economic and political justice.

“It is, therefore, respectfully prayed that the applicants may kindly be impleaded as party in the case, in the interest of justice – And as interim and permanent relief, directions may kindly be given to the CDA to stop eviction of students (male/female) from their hostels and illegal trespassing may also be ordered to be stopped,” the application requested the court.