Registration of case against SBCA officials, builder ordered

Jafari says that SBCA has given notices to residents to vacate building

KARACHI:

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has ordered the registration of a case against the builder and Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) officials while hearing a petition regarding an "illegal floor" demolition in Nazimabad.

Appearing before a two-judge bench, headed by Justice Nadeem Akhtar, the counsel for the builder argued that the SBCA officials had asked for money rather than preventing the illegal construction. "Pay up because the system is demanding money," he quoted the SBCA officials as allegedly saying.

"Do you realise what you're saying in court," Justice Akhtar asked. The builder's counsel responded: "Under the system I'm defining, money is requested during illegal construction in Sindh."

The court was furious at the SBCA officers and lawyers. Justice Akhtar remarked that the SBCA has become the most corrupt institution in the province. He remarked that "mafias, SBCA, and builders are connected. Why are illegal projects given approval in the first place?"

Read Cases against SBCA officials fail to deter illegal constructions

The court ordered the registration of a case against the builder and SBCA officials, and another case against the SBCA employee who took the money.

"Why was the illegal construction not dismantled when the building map was not approved," the court asked. SBCA Director Central Aamir Kamal Jafari responded by saying that resistance took place when they attempted to raze the building. "What do you do when there is resistance," Justice Akhtar asked.

Jafari said that the SBCA has given notices to the residents to vacate the building.

"You all go to sleep after serving notices in every case," remarked Justice Akhtar. The SBCA director responded that one officer typically handles 70 to 80 cases.

Justice Akhtar remarked that the city had become a concrete jungle due to the incompetence of the SBCA. The court ordered the SBCA to demolish the illegal floor in Nazimabad C-1 4/9 and submit a report on January 15.