ISLAMABAD   -   The Supreme Court of Pakistan Thursday summoned the Presidential Order for the establishment of Frontier Works Organization (FWO). A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Sardar Tariq Masood conducted hearing of an appeal against the Peshawar High Court (PHC) judgment. A large number of petitioners have challenged the PHC judgment through advocate Ch Imran Hassan Ali because the high court had dismissed their petitions on the technical ground. During the hearing, Ch Imran argued that on the last hearing, the bench had directed the FWO to file the Presidential Order (PO) for setting up the organization. Senior advocate Ahsan Bhoon, representing the FWO, said that the Order is 60 to 70 years old.  

Ch Imran contended that the FWO was formed on the direction of former President General Yahya Khan. Justice Tariq observed that fire incidents take place in many buildings for missing of record, and till date no such incident happened in the President House. He remarked that the FWO cannot say that due to fire the record, pertaining to presidential order for setting up FWO, is missing.

The judge inquired from Ahsan Bhoon that whether the Presidential Order has any importance or not? He said that the Court has to examine whether the FWO could acquire land for setting up a cement factory.

On the last hearing, the counsel for the KP government had informed that the cement factory was being set up for the construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam. He rejected the news that the land for the cement factory was acquired by the FWO. He said that the method of land acquisition had been adopted.

It is the stance of the petitioners that more than 160 acres of their land in Haripur was acquired by the KP government on the request of FWO for installation of a cement plant.

They submitted that the Constitution and the Federal Government Rules of Business 1973, only empower the Ministry of Defense to acquire land only for defense purposes. The FWO, being a formation of Pakistan army, cannot acquire land directly through the agency of a provincial government.

They added that the installation and operation of a cement plant is beyond the purpose for which FWO was established. They also submitted that multiple provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, 1984 have been violated by the respondents during the acquisition proceedings.

Later, the bench adjourned the case for sine die.