ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has reserved its judgment on a contentious public-private partnership for a school in Sector F-11, after the Capital Development Authority (CDA) formally objected that the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) cannot sublease a plot meant for a government school and that the matter was never placed before the federal cabinet for mandatory approval.
The CDA’s stance was presented before IHC Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas during the hearing of a petition challenging the handing over of a prime 21-kanal plot, valued at nearly Rs20 billion, to a private educational institution.
Justice Minhas reserved the order on the petition filed by the Federal Government Schools Teachers Association.
CDA Counsel Nazeer Jawad argued that the authority had only leased the plot in Sector F-11/2 to the FDE for educational purposes. “Being a lessee, the FDE cannot sublease this property to a private school,” Jawad said, emphasising that the CDA continues to collect annual rent from the federal body.
Highlighting a key legal point, the CDA counsel further stated that the joint venture between the Ministry of Federal Education and the private entity was not presented to the federal cabinet, a step often required for significant agreements involving public assets and private partnerships.
The petition, filed by the Federal Government Schools Teachers Association, challenges a 2023 agreement between the FDE and a private firm to establish a high-end school on land originally designated for a government primary school.
Justice Minhas asked the civic agency how long the plot had remained vacant.
The court was informed that the educational plot had been unused for over three decades.
According to the petition, the FDE entered into the agreement with a private firm in 2023 to establish a high-end school on the plot.
The move drew strong criticism from teachers, who argued that the land was meant for a government-run facility providing free education to children in line with the constitutional guarantee under Article 25-A.
Petitioner’s counsel Kashif Ali Malik contended that the state is constitutionally obligated to provide free and compulsory education to all school-going children.
“The FDE, instead of fulfilling its mandate, is surrendering its land to a private entity which will only serve a privileged class,” he argued.
He added that the CDA Rules and the Islamabad Land Disposal Regulations contain clear criteria for the allotment of plots to educational institutions, which in this case had been overlooked.
The controversy underscores the ongoing tension between the government’s mandate to provide free education under Article 25-A and its growing reliance on private entities to manage public assets, raising concerns about the privatisation of resources meant for the general public.
Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2025.
