Federal Constitutional Court Overturns Order to Demolish Monal Restaurant

ISLAMABAD — Report by Muhammad Saleem  The Federal Constitutional Court has set aside the earlier decision to demolish the well-known Monal Restaurant located in Pir Sohawa.
The court accepted the appeals filed by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad, and also vacated the stay order that had earlier been issued against the restaurant.
In its ruling, the court clarified that the question of land ownership will be decided independently by the relevant trial courts, without being influenced by the observations made during these proceedings, while administrative matters will fall under the jurisdiction of the concerned regulatory bodies. The court directed the trial courts to conclude the pending cases as expeditiously as possible.
During the hearing, Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi remarked that several important points had not been taken into account in the Supreme Court’s earlier verdict. The bench also expressed displeasure over the filing of the case and subsequent review petitions, with Justice Rizvi noting that the court should not base its decisions on emotion.
The Monal Restaurant case has been the subject of prolonged legal dispute, and today’s ruling is being seen as a significant development in the ongoing controversy.