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In response to a directive from the Islamabad High Court (IHC), the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has lifted the ban on property transfers.
This decision, communicated via a letter from Additional Director Land Affectees, Riaz Khan, overturns the ban initially imposed in January 2024 by the Deputy Director General Land.
The ban, which originally targeted property transfers associated with land affectees during the tenure of former Member Estate, Afnan Alam Khan, had been in effect unofficially for several months before its official enforcement in January 2024. While initially focused on properties allocated to land affectees, it eventually extended to various other cases, causing uncertainty among hundreds of buyers.
The affected individuals, whose land was acquired by the CDA, received plots as compensation. While the transfer of plot ownership through open auctions proceeded smoothly, the process was halted for plots allotted to land-affected persons.
This led to protests from the Real Estate Agents Association, who expressed their concerns at the civic authority’s premises regarding the ban on transferring titles in the land affectees’ sector. Despite meetings with Chairman CDA, Captain (Retired) Anwar-ul-Haq, and the then Member Estate, their grievances were not addressed.
Following protests and legal actions, the Islamabad High Court directed the CDA to immediately resume transferring properties to private individuals, affirming their right to ownership. Despite the CDA’s issuance of a notification, realtors remain skeptical, suspecting that the decision was made under court pressure.
The withdrawal of the ban, initially imposed by the Deputy Director General Land and revoked by a junior officer like the Additional Director Land Affectees, has raised suspicions. This suggests reluctance from higher management to fully comply with court orders.
Former Member Estate Afnan Alam Khan and several other officers faced an investigation by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) over alleged fraudulent allotments of land worth billions of rupees in sector E-11. The anti-corruption watchdog has sought comprehensive details of all allotments and relevant information from the CDA during Khan’s tenure.