The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday set aside the 2022 single-bench judgment, which had declared Pakistan Naval Farms and the Pakistan Navy Sailing Club along Rawal Lake illegal. A division bench comprising Justice Inaam Ameen Minhas and Justice Shah Rukh Arjumand allowed the appeals filed against the judgment of former IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah. The court also annulled the decision ordering demolition of the Navy Sailing Club building and set aside the findings of misconduct and criminal proceedings against former Chief of Naval Staff Admiral (R) Zafar Mahmood Abbasi.

The court further set aside the directions requiring the Auditor General of Pakistan to assess the alleged loss to the national exchequer and recover the amount from the officers held responsible. The division bench also annulled the order for declaring the transfer of land for the Naval Farms in the name of Pakistan Navy Headquarters illegal. Ministry of Defence, former naval chief Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi and others had challenged the single-bench judgment through intra-court appeals.

Advocate Ashtar Ausaf appeared on behalf of Admiral (retd) Zafar Mahmood Abbasi, while Sardar Ahmed Jamal and Abdul Wahid Qureshi also represented the petitioners.