The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Saturday ordered the government to dissolve the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and transfer its powers to the Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (MCI). The judgment said that the CDA charged the petitioners an amount of Rs337,442,856 for payment “under ROW charges”. It said that the “issuance of SRO constitutes an illegal act and is unconstitutional” under Article 77 of the Constitution, which directs that taxation powers must be exercised with the parliament’s authority. Justice Kayani noted, “Essentially, the imposition of direct taxes, ROW charges, or access charges by the CDA under the CDA Ordinance, 1960 based on municipal functions derived from the Municipal Administration Ordinance, 1960 without following the statutory procedure outlined in Sections 88, 89, and 90 of the ICT Local Government Act, 2015, is unlawful.” The order said, “It is now time for the federal government to take appropriate steps to terminate the functioning of the CDA in terms of Section 52 of the CDA Ordinance, 1960, and to formally dissolve the Authority, as its original mandate has been fulfilled. “The entire administrative, regulatory and municipal framework of Islamabad Capital Territory is now governed under the ICT Local Government Act, 2015, which is a special legislation enacted to regulate local governance through elected representatives.” While allowing both writ petitions, the order said that the SRO was declared “illegal” and “without lawful authority or jurisdiction”. Justice Kayani directed the government to “initiate and conclude the process for the dissolution of the CDA, and to transfer all powers, assets, and functions to the Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (MCI)”. “This transition shall ensure that the Islamabad Capital Territory is administered under a transparent, accountable, and lawful municipal framework, and that the rights of its citizens are duly protected under the law,” the order noted.