Illegal plaza bulldozed in Walled City

Traders association says action should be taken against officials who allow these constructions

LAHORE: A Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) team on Sunday demolished a plaza built illegally on government land near Masti Gate police station.

WCLA Deputy Director (Media) Tania Qureshi estimated the market value of the property to be around Rs800 million. She said the operation was carried out after the encroachers failed to pay heed to a warning notice. She said they had been asked to vacate the building but they refused, and instead threatened the WCLA team that had visited them to deliver the warning notice with dire consequences.



Qureshi said the demolition was part of an ongoing crackdown against encroachments. She said some encroachers had moved the Lahore High Court against the crackdown. She said action would be taken against these buildings in view of the court’s verdict.

She said removal of encroachment was necessary for the WCLA to complete its work in the area.

Meanwhile, All Pakistan Traders Association president Khalid Pervaiz said he believed it was not right to demolish buildings even if these were built illegally on encroached land. He said demolition would cause heavy losses to people who had bought commercial space in these buildings.

He said illegal construction could not be undertaken without help from building control officials of the City District Government of Lahore (CDGL). He said officials helped builders get approval for their construction plans. He said rather than bulldozing illegally built plazas, the crackdown should be diverted towards government officials who allow such constructions. “The WCLA should prevent encroachments rather than taking action after people have invested their lives’ savings in these buildings,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 31st, 2015.