(Abdul Basit Alvi)
One Constitution Avenue in Islamabad is associated with manipulation of legal frameworks for private gain, leading to losses to the public exchequer and weakening trust in justice, with its history involving legal maneuvering, financial default, judicial irregularities, and political complicity that turned a legitimate national initiative into large-scale appropriation of valuable state land. The project began before the 2005 Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit when Islamabad lacked a five-star hotel, prompting the Capital Development Authority to lease two prime sites, including a 13.5-acre plot on Constitution Avenue in the Red Zone near key state institutions for a luxury hotel. During bidding, hotelier Sadruddin Hashwani withdrew after finding the terms financially unviable, leaving Hafeez Pasha, a Faisalabad-based textile mill owner with no hospitality experience, to win the bid. A company called BNP Private Limited, not part of the original consortium, paid only about 15 percent of the Rs. 4.88 billion lease to take control, and after an associate of Pasha became Director Legal at the CDA, the lease terms were altered to permit residential apartments instead of a hotel. Despite a legal challenge by Hashwani and a CDA notice, Pasha falsely claimed he was building a hotel while continuing apartment construction, secured a zero-interest loan worth billions from the Bank of Punjab, sold 263 luxury apartments for over Rs. 200 billion, and then refused to pay the remaining 85 percent of the land cost or repay the loan, claiming financial losses.
Authorities remained largely inactive despite violations, while the case gained attention during Nawaz Sharif’s tenure but was disrupted by a change in government. During the project’s development, Hafeez Pasha allegedly distributed free or highly discounted flats to influential figures, including Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Chief Justice Saqib Nisar, and former Prime Minister Imran Khan, in exchange for legal or political protection. When the case reached the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Saqib Nisar, reportedly among the beneficiaries, issued a decision acknowledging the land belonged to the government and that the occupation and construction were illegal, yet chose to legalize the project, citing that the flats had already been built and occupied. He ordered the land price to be fixed at rates from fifteen years earlier and allowed Pasha, who had already collected around Rs. 200 billion, to pay about Rs. 17 billion in installments over eight years. Even this reduced settlement was reportedly not fulfilled, as Pasha defaulted on the installments while the apartments remained intact.
This matrix of corruption was held together by a strong relationship of mutual benefit. Many famous personalities—including Imran Khan, Aitzaz Ahsan, Shandana Gulzar, Nasirul Mulk, and Kashmala Tariq etc—have been named as owners or residents of these flats. This created a powerful constituency of influential stakeholders who had a vested interest in the project’s survival. The apathy of Imran Khan’s government is particularly glaring. When the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) came to power on a slogan of constructing a ‘Naya Pakistan’ based on rule of law and accountability, it was presented with the perfect test case. Instead of moving against this symbol of elite capture, the government apparently closed its eyes to the illegality, having allegedly secured a few flats for its leader and other key figures.
The fundamental facts of the case are damningly simple. This plot on Constitution Avenue was not part of the original master plan of Islamabad designed by Greek architect Constantinos Apostolou Doxiadis. It was added later, and even then, its usage was strictly and explicitly approved only for five-star hotels. The original advertisements published by the CDA in 2004 clearly described the project solely as a hotel; there was no mention of residential apartments or commercial sale anywhere in the original documentation. The lease was awarded at Rs. 75,000 per square yard, a price that paled in comparison to the Rs. 190,000 per square yard commercial rates of the Centaurus plot, precisely because the use was restricted to the less profitable hotel business. By illegally converting the use to residential, the developer captured a massive windfall profit at the direct expense of the state.
In April 2026, after years of dithering, the Islamabad High Court finally upheld the CDA’s decision to cancel the lease due to the massive payment defaults. Eviction notices were issued. One Constitution Avenue stands as a challenge to the nation, a demand that the people rise to put iron hands on such corrupt mafias and ensure the compliance of law and regulation for all, without any discrimination, for once and for all.
