Rana Sanaullah’s ‘residential’ plaza still masquerading as a commercial one: The curious case of 5 Fane Road

* Town Planning Department official says area in question not feasible for commercial construction
* Opposition leader accuses Punjab govt of not ‘cooperating’ with committee probing matter
* Sanaullah claims to have approval to build commercial plaza in a residential area

By Shahnawaz Khan

LAHORE: A serious violation of building by-laws and the Lahore Master Plan, construction without the approval of the High Design Committee (HDC) and several other flaws and violations continues to haunt Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah’s plaza.

Also, Chaudhry Zaheeruddin, the head of the committee appointed by the Punjab Assembly to probe the irregularities committed in the plaza’s construction, alleged that the Punjab government was not cooperating with the investigation. Sanaullah and his plaza have been in the limelight for sometime now, after it was disclosed in January that the law minister’s offices were located in a building – designated as residential premises – at 5 Fane Road. The building was being used for commercial purposes, which was a gross violation of the High-Rising Building Commission’s (HRBC) recommendations.

Not feasible: An official of the City District Government Lahore’s (CDGL) Town Planning Department, requesting anonymity, said, “According to the CDGL’s Lahore Master Plan, Sanaullah’s plaza is situated in a residential area. Also, according to the CDGL’s building by-laws, the plaza is built on an area of approximately eight marlas, which is itself not feasible for the construction of a high-rise building.” The official said that before commencing construction, the law minister had deposited the map-fee for residential premises, but had later built a commercial plaza.

“After the issue was taken up, Sanaullah tried to deposit approximately Rs 1,000,000 in commercial fees, but the record had already been sealed by the relevant department,” the official said, adding that the plaza had been constructed without the HDC’s permission. “Similarly, the plaza does not have a proper parking area, approximately 20 feet in front of the building or in the basement,” he said.

In February, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had constituted a technical committee, under the supervision of the commissioner Lahore, to inquire the matter.

In the month’s first week, Punjab Assembly Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal also constituted a three-member committee, headed by Leader of the Opposition Chaudhry Zaheeruddin and consisting of MPAs Mohsin Leghari and Amna Ulfat, to probe the law minister’s alleged illegal plaza matter.

It was also decided that the committee, earlier constituted by the CM, would work under the new committee established by the PA. However, despite the lapse of six weeks, nothing substantial has developed in the matter’s resolution.

Talking to Daily Times, the opposition leader said, “The technical committee constituted by the CM is not cooperating with us. A few days earlier I wrote a letter to Lahore Commissioner Khusro Pervaiz, asking him to provide updates on the issue and I specifically mentioned that the committee should stay focused on resolving the plaza issue. On March 22, I received a reply from the commissioner, in which he said the committee would present its report before the parliamentary committee in the coming week.

Zaheer alleged the Punjab government was not “showing any respect to his committee”.

Duly approved: However, the law minister provided a different outlook on the entire issue. “The committee, which is working under the supervision of the Lahore commissioner, has presented its report to the opposition leader. In its report, the technical committee looked at only two issues, the first being the ownership of the land in question. This, the inquiry committee discovered that the land – measuring around eight marlas – was owned by me. The plaza is constructed on seven marlas of this land while the rest of it is being used for parking. The committee also inquired the issue of the alleged illegal construction. It discovered that I had gained approval for a map in the year 2000 to construct a triple-storey residential building and later in 2008, I got an approval for further construction works.” The law minister said that according to the building by-laws, if the Tehsil Municipal Administration concerned did not issue a notice within 60 days of the “illegal construction”, the construction would be considered legal. CDGL District Officer (Planning) Qamar Islam said, “We were ordered to give all the related documents to the committee under the supervision of the Lahore commissioner, and we done as asked. The CDGL will do nothing more and will wait for the committee’s decision.”

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