It is often the case in Pakistan that state institutions are the ones conducting unlawful activities. These institutions have their claws deeply entrenched in all factions of the state machinery that there is seldom any criticism against them or any lawful proceedings to right their wrongs. Such is the case with Margalla Hills. As per the judgment given by the Islamabad High court the military cannot conduct commercial activities outside of its domain. This means that it cannot own and use land for the purpose of profit making at the expense of civilians and the wildlife. However, many times such state institutions claim to be above the law and state jurisdiction.
The military has built the Margalla Greens Golf Club on the foothills of Margalla on encroached land. In January, the Islamabad High Court issued an order which allowed authorities to seal off Monal and take control of the Margalla Greens Golf Club. The order to seal Monal was later overturned by the Supreme Court. The issue of the club, however, remains to be sorted. According to the judgement, Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Athar Minallah has stated that according to the Pakistan Army Act, 1952, the Air Force Act, 1953 and the Pakistan Navy Ordinance, 1961, armed forces do not have any claim or jurisdiction to engage in business ventures. According to this their activities are unlawful and must be reprimanded. However, this alone is not the issue. The institution is committing these activities on encroached land which is an offense in itself regardless of who commits it. Moreover, Section 245 of Chapter 2 of the constitution which is in regards to the armed forces of the country states that the purpose of the armed forces is to defend the country and aid the civil government when and if asked to do so. The armed forces are in no way authorized to conduct business activities.
There is a two-fold problem that has arisen with the issue of Margalla Hills. Firstly, the business activities are leading to environmental degradation. At a time when the world is trying to save forests and green areas in order to dampen the effects of global warming, Pakistanis are cutting down green areas for profitable business activities. This is causing and will cause many problems in the future with regards to the environment. Secondly, there is blatant disregard or laws created by the constitution of Pakistan. It was reported that the institution was sent multiple legal notices, however, it disregarded all of them and instead stated that the land on which a golf course has been built was taken over for security reasons. It is a sad state of affairs where one institution has so much power that it does not pay any heed to the laws of the land.
