MULTAN: The deputy commissioner (DC) office will challenge a Lahore High Court, Multan Bench, judgment regarding the ownership of 47 acres for the proposed mini-civil secretariat in the city, Dawn has learnt.

According to the revenue record, 377 kanals and 16 marlas in mauza Jungle Khan Muhammad, Multan city, was allotted to Pujara Ram and Roshan Das under the Colonisation of Government Land Act on May 24, 1946, through auction against Rs4,7462. After the partition, Ram and Das migrated to India and the Board of Revenue (BoR) allotted the land to Hafeezan Khanam on May 24, 1960, under the Well Sinking Scheme. Later on, the land was allotted to Shadi by the Rehabilitation and Settlement Authorities on June 2, 1966.This started a litany of litigation between sides from the BoR to the Supreme Court of Pakistan and long story short, the office of the collector declared the land belonged to the state and a team last month identified the land for the establishment of a proposed civil secretariat for south Punjab and other government offices that are situated in congested areas of the city or are established in rented buildings.

DC Nadir Chathha said that after the record was scrutinised, his office decided to protect the state land and informed the court about the misappropriation without any delay.

He said it had been decided that an application under the civil procedure code would be submitted in the Lahore High Court that an earlier judgment was obtained through concealing the facts.

`A petition could be filed in the Supreme Court against the decision if needed,` he concluded.