The Sindh High Court has announced its verdict in the long-standing 54-Acre land dispute between the Sindh Police and the New Town Cooperative Housing Society.

The Hyderabad Circuit Bench of the Sindh High Court, comprising Justice Muhammad Saleem Jessar and Justice Nisar Ahmed Bhambhro, lifted the construction ban in favor of the housing society. However, the final ownership of the land will depend on an inquiry report from the Deputy Commissioner (DC) Hyderabad.

Delivering the verdict on constitutional petition D-575/2025, the court stated that if the inquiry confirms the land belongs to the police, the society must hand it over to the department without compensation.

Advocate Ayatullah Khawaja represented the New Town Cooperative Housing Society, arguing that the Mukhtiarkar Qasimabad had illegally stopped construction activities even though the land is still registered in the society’s name in the revenue records.

In its judgment, the court noted that neither the Land Utilization Department nor the police took any legal steps to cancel the society’s allotment. The court directed the DC Hyderabad to complete the ownership inquiry as soon as possible.

According to records, the land was initially allotted to the Sindh Police in 1974, for which Rs 200,000 was deposited in the government treasury. However, in 1976, the same land—valued in billions—was allotted to the New Town Society in exchange for land it previously held in Deh Ganjo Takar. This led to a dispute between two claimants: the police and the housing society.

Sources revealed that parts of the same land were once occupied by members of the Pathan community, and it was originally part of a 371-acre tract allotted to the All Pakistan Rajputana Federation in 1968 for welfare purposes. Later, through court orders and directives from the Land Utilization Department, the Federation’s share was reduced to 42 acres, while multiple claimants emerged over the remaining land.

Sources further said that the absence of the controversial 2011 summary from official records has made the matter even more suspicious. Questions are also being raised about how and on whose instructions the Board of Revenue reallotted the land to New Town Society in 2011 based on this confidential summary.

Deputy Commissioner Hyderabad Zain-ul-Abideen Memon told BOL News that the inquiry would be completed within two weeks as per court orders and that all available records would be reviewed during the investigation.

DIG Hyderabad Tariq Razzaq Dharejo confirmed that SSP Hyderabad has been appointed as the focal person for the case. However, despite several attempts and a formal questionnaire, SSP Adeel Chandio did not respond, leaving it unclear what steps the police will take to reclaim the disputed land.

Sindh-High-Court-Verdict-on-Land-Dispute.pdf