Islamabad’s long-disputed One Constitution Avenue tower is set to become a five-star hotel, after the federal cabinet approved a joint investigation team (JIT) report into alleged irregularities in the project and the government took legal possession of the building.
Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi announced on Wednesday that the government would try to convert the building into a five-star hotel within the next few months, saying Islamabad faces a shortage of hotels and the building should return to the purpose for which it was originally built.
A hotel again, within months
Naqvi said the building was originally constructed for use as a hotel, and the government would try to reach an agreement with a major hotel chain to convert it into a five-star hotel as soon as possible. APP reported that the minister said the objective was to make the building operational as soon as possible and give Islamabad a new five-star hotel.
The minister said the government had now legally taken possession of the property after the federal cabinet approved the JIT report. Following the cabinet’s directions, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) Member Administration would take immediate charge of all matters relating to the building from that day.
Naqvi also said the government’s objective was to address illegal occupation of land across Islamabad, regardless of the nature or location of the encroachments. He credited the CDA team for pursuing the case, particularly CDA lawyer Kashif, while acknowledging that mistakes by CDA officials had led to the situation and saying the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) would provide further details about those responsible.
What the JIT found
Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal told a press conference in Islamabad, alongside Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry, that the federal cabinet had approved the JIT report on alleged irregularities in the One Constitution Avenue project. Khabr reported that Iqbal said fraud was committed in the name of the project, the CDA was negligent in dealing with the irregularities, and rules and regulations were ignored.
According to the briefing, the JIT found that the auction process was manipulated, rules were relaxed to benefit someone, and the project’s paperwork was suspicious and based on forgery. The report says the bank guarantee requirement was removed, and apartments were sold illegally after the project had been approved as a five-star hotel. Iqbal also said the first building on Constitution Avenue belongs to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which claims the address as its own, and that the address was given to the project only for marketing purposes.
The report names former finance minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh as the alleged mastermind and recommends that his company be blacklisted. Others named as responsible include Dr Faisal Kamran, Rai Nawaz Kharal, Kamran Lashari, Azhar Chaudhry and retired Brigadier Nasrullah, along with some CDA officials. Chaudhry said Shaikh’s name is on the Exit Control List. These are findings of the investigation; the allegations will be tested in legal proceedings, and no response from the named individuals was reported in the sources checked.
NAB given three months, buyers promised payment
The JIT recommends re-auctioning the building and giving it a new name, and its findings have been sent to NAB for further investigation. Talal Chaudhry said NAB has been given three months to file references against those responsible, and Tarar said NAB would examine the matter on merit and the government would apply the law equally.
Iqbal said victims of the project will be compensated and genuine investors will be protected. Naqvi said the government would pay the concerned people the amounts due to them according to the JIT report, and since the cabinet had approved the report, its recommendations were binding and the payments would be made accordingly. The exact number of affected apartment owners and the timeline for payments have not been announced yet.
Chaudhry said seven or eight people summoned by the inquiry did not appear to prove their claims, including the PTI founder, Imran Khan. Naqvi thanked the prime minister for supporting the process, saying the prime minister had assured him the matter would be decided on merit and directed that there should be no double standards between the rich and the poor, with everyone treated equally under the same rules.
A project disputed for two decades
The One Constitution Avenue project has been controversial almost since it began. According to reports of the project history, the 13.5-acre plot near the Prime Minister’s House and the Diplomatic Enclave was auctioned to the BNP Group in March 2005 for Rs4.88 billion.
The project was initially approved as a five-star hotel, but it was later converted into residential apartments and commercial spaces. After the lease of the project was cancelled and a legal dispute followed, the Islamabad High Court upheld the decision of the CDA. Iqbal said the Federal Investigation Agency continued investigations during the tenures of Chaudhry Nisar and himself.
The government has not named the hotel chain it hopes to sign an agreement with, and no exact date has been given for the building to open as a hotel. What is clear is that the state now holds the property, the investigation’s findings are with NAB, and the tower that spent years at the centre of a property dispute is being prepared for a new life as one of Islamabad’s leading hotels.
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