Islamabad High Court Orders Dissolution of CDA

ISLAMABAD: (Mudassar Chaudhary)-  The Islamabad High Court has directed the federal government to dissolve the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and transfer all its powers and assets to the Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI).

In a detailed verdict issued by Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, the court emphasized that the dissolution process should be initiated and completed by the federal government without delay.

According to the judgment, the CDA Ordinance was originally enacted to facilitate the establishment of the federal capital and oversee its developmental needs. However, the court stated that with the introduction of new governance frameworks and legislation specifically the Islamabad Local Government Act the relevance and utility of the CDA Ordinance have effectively ceased.

The court held that the administrative, regulatory, and municipal responsibilities of Islamabad now fall under the jurisdiction of the local government system, which is governed by elected representatives. As such, the continuation of CDA’s functions, particularly those overlapping with MCI’s mandate, is legally redundant.

The judgment also stressed that the governance of the city must now ensure transparency and accountability under this framework.

According to the Islamabad High Court, CDA does not hold any legal authority to impose taxes independently. The court declared CDA’s SRO related to right of way and access charges null and void, deeming all actions taken under it as unlawful.

The court ordered that any funds collected under this SRO be returned to the affected parties. These charges had been levied on petrol pumps, CNG stations, and housing societies for direct access to main roads.

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The High Court also underlined that no taxation can be imposed in Islamabad without the approval of the local government, as stipulated by law. It called for the protection of the fundamental rights of the residents of Islamabad through a legal and democratic framework, urging the federal government to ensure the transition of authority leads to a more accountable city administration.