Illegal occupation: Court asked to order Rangers to vacate bungalows of KDA officers

Officers allege that they have yet to be given the physical possession of the plots.


Our Correspondent October 25, 2013
"In 2006, the defunct KDA allowed the Sindh Rangers to reside in the bungalows temporarily but they have yet to vacate the premises," Lawyer for the petitioners. PHOTO: EXPRESS/FILE

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court issued notice to the provincial and federal government authorities on Friday on a petition filed by the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) officers against alleged illegal occupation of their land by the Rangers in Sindh since 2006.

Twenty officers of the authority went to the court, alleging that the paramilitary force had encroached upon their plots. They named the Sindh Rangers director-general, Karachi Development Authority Cooperative Housing (KDACH) Society and the Sindh Board of Revenue’s senior member as respondents.



The petitioners said that they were officers of the KDA and were allotted 202-square-yard plots with bungalows on them near the National Stadium in Karachi.

They maintained that the while they were allotted the plots after completing all legal formalities and paying the liable dues, KDA and the board of revenue delayed handing over physical possession of the land to them. During this time, the Sindh Rangers illegally occupied their bungalows in connivance with the KDA and Sindh board of revenue high-ups, the petitioners informed the judges.

“In 2006, the defunct KDA allowed the Sindh Rangers to reside in the bungalows on the COD hills as temporary arrangement to perform their duties,” the petitioners recalled. “Since then, we have been waiting for the physical possession of the plots but the Rangers have yet to vacate the premises.”



Their lawyer, S Zaki Muhammad, submitted that the petitioners were suffering huge losses due to the illegal occupation of their lands. “This is a violation of the Articles 23 and 24 of the Constitution,” he argued.

The lawyer asked the court to declare that the petitioners were lawful owners of the land and that the Rangers could not occupy it. The court was also requested to order Rangers DG to immediately vacate the premises with further direction to the KDACH Society and Board of Revenue to hand over possession of land to the petitioners.

After the preliminary hearing, the bench headed by Justice Munib Akhtar issued notice to the Sindh Rangers DG, KDACH Society and a senior member of the Board of Revenue for November 1. The deputy attorney general and additional advocate general were also issued notice to file comments of relevant provincial and federal authorities by the next date of hearing.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 26th, 2013.

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