RUDA Barred From Working on Unpurchased Land

The Lahore High Court (LHC) has barred the Ravi Urban Development Authority (RUDA) from acquiring unpurchased land in defiance of Supreme Court (SC) rulings. In this regard, LHC’s Justice Shahid Anwar heard the public interest lawsuit against the RUDA’s unlawful acquisition of land. As reported by Samaa News, the petitioner stated that the authority has been taking action on the pretext of an amendment in the RUDA Act 2020, which is in violation of the SC order. Therefore, he urged the LHC to prevent the authority from doing so. Previously, the SC had instructed the RUDA to only acquire the land that it had purchased and had directed it to refrain from using force against anyone in order to seize the property. Earlier in January, LHC had disbanded the project and declared it unlawful as it violated several laws, lacked a master plan, and acquired land illegally. However, the SC overruled LHC’s order and granted RUDA conditional permission to operate on purchased lands. It is pertinent to mention that the former Prime Minister (PM), Imran Khan, launched this controversial real estate project in 2020.