Death and allotments: At ombudsman’s office, man dies
Retired CDA clerk pursuing case over plot allotment was apparently exhausted by security procedures
DESIGN BY TALHA KHAN
ISLAMABAD:
A retired Capital Development Authority (CDA) employee died of a heart attack on Tuesday at the Federal Ombudsman’s Office while pursuing a case against the civic agency for depriving him of a plot.
Muhammad Banaras, 67, a resident of Saidpur village, retired as an office assistant in 1999.
He had approached the ombudsman after the civic body showed reluctance in giving him a plot in Kuri Village.
Ombudsman’s office officials told The Express Tribune that Banaras got to the office in the morning for a hearing scheduled before senior adviser Imtiaz Inayat Elahi, who is dealing with cases against CDA.
The officials, who requested not to named, said Banaras was not allowed to enter through the back entrance, which is closed to the public, and was told to go to the front. According to the official, the deceased was unable to convince a security guard to allow him to enter on health grounds and had to walk a long distance to enter the building.
He died shortly after getting to the third floor. A person accompanying him later said that Banaras was thirsty at the time and there was no drinking water available at the office.
Later, rescue officials shifted him to Polyclinic, where he was pronounced dead. The Ombudsman’s Office official said that Banaras was among 16 individual complainants that came to the office on Tuesday with cases against the CDA regarding deprivation of plots.
Sufi Abdul Majeed, who also retired from the CDA and was close friends with the deceased, told The Express Tribune that his colleague deserved the plot. He said the deceased had seven children.
Imtiaz Inayat Elahi who is dealing with the complaint, confirmed the death. Elahi, who was CDA chairman from 2009 to 2011, said that he will look into whether denying him entrance through the back gate could be considered a lapse on the part of the administration, adding that public entry through the gate has been restricted due to security concerns.
On the merits of the case, he said the CDA should consider the rights of its lower-grade staffers. “If officials on deputation can get plots from the CDA, low-cadre staffers also have a right to the same facility,” he remarked.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 4th, 2016.
A retired Capital Development Authority (CDA) employee died of a heart attack on Tuesday at the Federal Ombudsman’s Office while pursuing a case against the civic agency for depriving him of a plot.
Muhammad Banaras, 67, a resident of Saidpur village, retired as an office assistant in 1999.
He had approached the ombudsman after the civic body showed reluctance in giving him a plot in Kuri Village.
Ombudsman’s office officials told The Express Tribune that Banaras got to the office in the morning for a hearing scheduled before senior adviser Imtiaz Inayat Elahi, who is dealing with cases against CDA.
The officials, who requested not to named, said Banaras was not allowed to enter through the back entrance, which is closed to the public, and was told to go to the front. According to the official, the deceased was unable to convince a security guard to allow him to enter on health grounds and had to walk a long distance to enter the building.
He died shortly after getting to the third floor. A person accompanying him later said that Banaras was thirsty at the time and there was no drinking water available at the office.
Later, rescue officials shifted him to Polyclinic, where he was pronounced dead. The Ombudsman’s Office official said that Banaras was among 16 individual complainants that came to the office on Tuesday with cases against the CDA regarding deprivation of plots.
Sufi Abdul Majeed, who also retired from the CDA and was close friends with the deceased, told The Express Tribune that his colleague deserved the plot. He said the deceased had seven children.
Imtiaz Inayat Elahi who is dealing with the complaint, confirmed the death. Elahi, who was CDA chairman from 2009 to 2011, said that he will look into whether denying him entrance through the back gate could be considered a lapse on the part of the administration, adding that public entry through the gate has been restricted due to security concerns.
On the merits of the case, he said the CDA should consider the rights of its lower-grade staffers. “If officials on deputation can get plots from the CDA, low-cadre staffers also have a right to the same facility,” he remarked.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 4th, 2016.