ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has decided to challenge the closure and demolition of the Monal restaurant, which was recently ordered by the Supreme Court for encroaching on protected land.
In a conversation with Dawn, CDA’s Director of Environment, Dr. Irfan Niazi, stated, “The CDA plans to take the Monal case back to the Supreme Court in a separate matter involving the Municipal Corporation Islamabad (MCI) to clarify that the restaurant’s existence was not unjustified.”
The official expressed hope that the CDA would be able to demonstrate that, according to the law, the CDA’s acquired land cannot be transferred to anyone without compensation.
The Supreme Court had ordered the closure of both Monal and the adjacent La Montana restaurant in August of last year, with the establishments being shut down in September to protect the biodiversity of the Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP).
“The closure of Monal was ordered solely because the word ‘restaurant’ was missing from its conceptual document,” the CDA official claimed. “The document referred to the site as a hotel, recreational facility, and tourist destination. I had requested that Monal be considered as a hotel and tourist spot with a restaurant, but the court ruled for its closure and demolition due to the absence of the term ‘restaurant,’” he explained.
The CDA also presented a list of 132 other hotels, restaurants, and recreational facilities within the national park, but the court did not take any action regarding these establishments. This list included a hotel run by the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) near Monal, along with smaller kiosks and various restaurants and hotels in the Shakarparian area, as well as the Islamabad Club and the Pak-China Friendship Centre.
Some owners of these establishments were contacted, but only a few responded. A few declined to share details, while others claimed they had not received any notices from the authorities. PTDC’s Acting Managing Director Ashfaq Ahmed also declined to comment, stating he would return the call later.
Monal was constructed by the CDA in 2004 and became operational in 2006. The CDA leased the restaurant to the Monal Group of Hotels after its establishment. Two decades ago, the CDA, under former chairman Kamran Lashari, identified a lack of recreational areas, hotels, and tourist destinations in the capital. During this period, plots for high-rise buildings, such as Centaurus and Constitution 1, were auctioned, and restaurants like Monal and 1969 were established.
Former CDA chairman Kamran Lashari shared his experience in setting up Monal, noting that its construction took a year. “If there were any issues with Monal harming the national park, solutions should have been explored instead of proceeding directly to its closure,” he said. He pointed out that several countries, including African nations and Switzerland, generate millions of dollars from tourism in national parks and suggested that a committee of experts could have been formed to find ways to make the restaurant environmentally friendly.
In September, a three-judge bench rejected review petitions filed by the Monal Group of Companies and others. On August 21, the Supreme Court had directed the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board to take control of Monal, La Montana, and Gloria Jeans, with the CDA and police providing assistance.
In a 13-page order, then-Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa emphasized that Monal, La Montana, and Gloria Jeans violated the Islamabad Wildlife (Protection, Preservation, and Management) Ordinance of 1979. He criticized the operators of these restaurants and the authorities who allowed their operations for disregarding the integrity of the national park, damaging its flora, and disrupting local wildlife. The Supreme Court also lamented the significant environmental cost borne by the public, which will continue to affect future generations.
