Another heritage building bites the dust

One of the oldest colonial-era heritage buildings in Karachi, Bhatia Bhuwan, has largely been demolished, allegedly by its owner, with only the building's façade and peripheral structure remaining intact.

According to area residents, the demolition of the building's rooftop and internal structural framework had been underway for the last couple of weeks, with relevant authorities failing to notice the heritage's destruction.

As evidence of this claim, labourers could be seen tearing down whatever was left of the pillars inside the building on Thursday.

Debris piled up, spilling outside the building, much to the chagrin of commuters and shopkeepers in the vicinity. The shopkeepers, in particular, are unhappy with the way the demolition was carried out.

"This is one of the oldest buildings I know of [in the city]," said one among them, standing by the site. "It was a three-storey building," he added, claiming that it had been razed by its owner and the demolition work was initiated few weeks ago. According to him, a new plaza was to be erected in place of the old, now almost-gone heritage building.

When the issue gained attention, a team comprising senior officials of the Sindh Archaeology and Antiquities Department and led by archaeology director Abdul Fatah Shaikh visited the site on Thursday.

Shaikh confirmed that it was the building's owner who had perpetrated the demolition of its inner structure and said his department had an FIR registered against those involved in the demolition.

He further assured that he had personally met police officials over the matter and the building's demolition had been halted. "It will not be demolished any further."

The official then produced a letter addressed to Arambagh Police Station SHO, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune.

In the letter, Shaikh requested that an FIR be registered on priority basis against persons identified as Abdul Ghafoor, Rasheed and others for tearing down the building, under Section 18 of the Sindh Cultural Heritage (Preservation) Act, 1994.

When The Express Tribune tried to talk to a man who identified himself as the contractor assigned the building's demolition, he avoided sharing any details.

"I cannot share anything," he said, maintaining that the building's owner had forbidden him from giving out any details. "I cannot even share any of the owner's details," he added before scurrying away, fear and anxiety evident in his demeanour.

Fading heritage

Bhatia Bhuwan was constructed in 1931 on what is today Prarthana Samaj Road, in Thattai compound opposite Dow Dental College. Like other colonial-era buildings in Karachi, it was being used for commercial purposes and was particularly famous for housing footwear shops.

According to architect Marvi Mazhar, at least three such buildings have been razed in Karachi in just a month.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, she claimed that the buildings' owners colluded with government officials to tear down the heritage structures, so that modern high-rises could be built in their place.

Criticising the Sindh government for failing to protect the city's historical buildings, she questioned that if relevant authorities couldn't prevent the structures' demolition, then "what is the point of listing them as heritage sites?"

"These buildings are [part of] the city's history, but we are losing them one by one," she lamented.

Earlier, in a letter to the archaeology and antiquities department, Mazhar had pointed out that Bhatia Bhuwan was of great cultural and historical importance.

It has a stone façade, wooden windows and doors and balconies, which are no more, once supported by stone corbels, she had written in the letter available with The Express Tribune. She requested the department to take urgent action against the building's "insensitive demolition" and preserve it.

The Sindh Cultural Heritage (Preservation) Act, 1994, obliges relevant persons and authorities to protect the outer frame of a heritage building, allowing changes to its internal framework.

As many as 1,739 buildings had been declared heritage sites in Karachi. Unfortunately, it seems the department responsible for ensuring their preservation does not have a single official to monitor them.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 2^nd, 2020.