SC orders eviction of illegal occupants from Evacuee Board properties

Questions where were officials when the properties were being occupied

KARACHI: The Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan has ordered to evict all illegal occupants from the buildings owned by the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB). The court also ordered to launch an investigation against officials who connived with the illegal occupants as well as corrupt officials of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA).
A three-member bench, comprising Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Justice Maqbool Baqar and Justice Sajjad Ali Shah was hearing the petition against illegal occupation of buildings owned by the ETPB.
The court expressed displeasure over the illegal occupation of ETPB’s properties and ordered to get all of them vacated at the earliest.


Justice Ahmed asked about the reason behind the illegal occupations in Lyari. ETPB officials, present in the courtroom, informed the bench that most of the properties had been illegally occupied during the gang wars in Lyari. Justice Ahmed questioned where the government was when the properties were being occupied illegally. “Lyari is now free of gangs, then why have the illegal occupations not been cleared?” he questioned.
To this, the EPTB officials said that the mafia had sold the properties to unwitting tenants. There are several families residing in the building, the officials told the court, adding that there were 17 building owned by the board in Lyari alone.
The court ordered the Sindh Government to consider the option of relocating the families residing in the buildings.

HIGHLIGHT
ETPB officials, present in the courtroom, told the bench that most of the properties had been illegally occupied during the gang wars in Lyari