Lawyer Ali Hussain has filed a constitutional case at the Supreme Court seeking to annul the government’s agreement to hand over land to UAE-based Eagle Hills under the Rasmale project. He announced the filing in a post on X.

The case concerns the agreement signed on 21 September between the Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development and Eagle Hills. Although the government has not disclosed the full details of the deal, the case states that more than 500 hectares of reclaimed land from Rasmale were given to the company for 99 years without any acquisition cost or rent, along with the right to lease developed properties to third parties.

The case argues that Article 250 of the Constitution requires state property to be leased or disposed of in accordance with law, and that no legal framework allows state land to be handed to a foreign party in this manner. It also notes that while Article 251 caps leases to foreign parties at 99 years, granting the right to sublease to third parties could open the door to foreign ownership of the land indefinitely.

The petitioner has also asked for an interim order to halt implementation of the agreement until the court reaches a decision, to prevent the state from incurring irreversible financial and legal liabilities.