DHA Sect 5 Appeal to Sindh High Court

Request to Sindh High Court for a suo moto notice
This is a pro bono appeal to the Hon’able Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court for taking a suo moto notice against the Defence Housing Authority Karachi for discriminating against the citizens of Pakistan and violating their fundamental rights by compelling them to declare their Religion and Sect, in the application forms for allotment of plots in DHA City Karachi.
It is no business of the DHA to ask citizens to declare their Religion and Sect for routine commercial transactions. Such declarations could simply result in discrimination and bias for or against allocation of a plot to a person depending upon her/his religion or sect. This could also result in DHA making segregated living zones for people of different religions and sects thus further adding to the division of society on sectarian grounds.
It is also against the fundamental rights of citizens who do not wish to divide themselves into Sects. You will appreciate that the great Prophet of Islam (PBUH) did not subscribe to any ‘sect’. To compel His and the followers of other religions to brand and divide themselves into Sects is therefore an absolutely unethical and undesirable demand on the part of the DHA. Unless checked, this practice may soon extend to declaration of religion and sect for other routine commercial transactions such as buying a PIA ticket, or obtaining a mobile telephone SIM.
The Hon’able Chief Justice is requested to take a Suo Moto notice and order the DHA to remove the requirement of Religion and Sect from its application forms and other related documents, so that the citizens of Pakistan are not discriminated or divided on the basis of religion or Sect.

Naeem Sadiq

Mr. Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany
Honourable Chief Justice
Sindh High Court

Request to Sindh High Court for a suo moto notice
Your Honour,
I had sent an appeal to your Honour, for taking suo moto notice against the Defence Housing Authority Karachi for including the requirement of Religion / Sect in the application forms for allotment of plots. (attached). A few days later the DHA issued a clarification saying that “ DHA city applicants are exempted from filling the column of religion / sect” . However as of today, one can see on the DHA Karachi’s website that the requirement of Religion / Sect continues to exisit and has not been removed from the application forms. Clearly the press statement was a first aid or fire fighting measure, but not intended to resolve the basic issue.
The DHA has failed to explain :
Why was this requirement inserted to start with, and why has it become optional now ?
Why does the DHA not modify the form itself (should take no more than 5 minutes), which is the correct professional way of making an amendment, instead of sending press briefs.
What about those thousands, who have already submitted their forms, with declaration of their religion and sects. How will this information be used?
Since when has the DHA assumed the new responsibility of interpreting jurisprudence. The next of kin is stated by the buyer, any time a plot/house is sold, and is not open to any interpretation by DHA.
Which other column of the application form is optional, or will we be told only when we approach a court?
It is clear that the press release is a shoddy attempt at “damage control”. One would have expected a more institutional policy action that ensures that this and all other documents of DHA (and other organisations) , do not compel citizens to declare their faith, sect or fiqh for the purpose of routine commercial transactions.

Letter to Dawn on 5th Sept 2009

Dear Sir,
In response to my Dawn August 18, 2009 letter the DHA issued a press clarification saying that “ DHA city applicants are exempted from filling the column of religion / sect” . However as of today, one can see on the DHA Karachi’s website that the requirement of Religion / Sect continues to exisit and has not been removed from the application forms. Clearly the press statement was a first aid or fire fighting measure, but not intended to resolve the basic issue.
The DHA has failed to explain :
Why was this requirement inserted to start with, and why has it become optional now ?
Why does the DHA not modify the form itself (should take no more than 5 minutes), which is the correct professional way of making an amendment, instead of sending press briefs.
What about those thousands, who have already submitted their forms, with declaration of their religion and sects. How will this information be used?
Since when has the DHA assumed the new responsibility of interpreting jurisprudence. The next of kin is stated by the buyer, any time a plot/house is sold, and is not open to any interpretation by DHA.
Which other column of the application form is optional, or will we be told only when we approach a court?
It is clear that the press release is a shoddy attempt at “damage control”. One would have expected a more institutional policy action that ensures that this and all other documents of DHA (and other organisations) , do not compel citizens to declare their faith, sect or fiqh for the purpose of routine commercial transactions.

Naeem Sadiq
September 5, 2009