Notice to govt over Park & Ride Plaza

LAHORE: Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed of the Lahore High Court Thursday issued notices to Punjab government, Lahore Development Authority and Parks and Horticulture Authority on a writ petition which has questioned the construction of Liberty Park and Ride Shopping Plaza at Liberty Market, allegedly at the site allocated for developing a park.The judge directed the respondents to also file reply to petition before or on March 2.The petition has been filed through Muhammad Azhar Siddique by six shop owners at Liberty Market inter alia contending that the transfer of open space, originally allocated for a park, to LDA for the purpose of constructing the plaza was illegal, unreasonable, based on malafide, and violation of the fundamental rights enshrined in the constitution.They prayed to the court to declare that the said open space was still in the ownership and control of PHA and that all subsequent transactions or transfers of it by any authority was without any legal jurisdiction and have to be treated as nullity. They said the PHA and LDA have no jurisdiction to go into business other than those prescribed in the Acts, Regulations and Rules, therefore the court should cancel all notifications issued by the PHA and the Punjab govt purporting to transfer the said open space to LDA – Nation