Contempt notice issued in cottage industry land case

BoR member allegedly ignored the allotment and allowed encroachement

KARACHI:

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has contempt of court notice to the senior member of the Board of Revenue (BoR) in response to a petition filed regarding the occupation of 2,300 plots of the victims of Cottage Industries, Landhi.

Justice Salahuddin Panhwar presided over a two-member bench and heard the petition.

In defiance of the court orders, the senior members of the BoR did not appear in the court. This deliberate act amounts to a violation of the court order, leaving the court deeply outraged.

Usman Farooq Advocate, the petitioner's counsel, argued that the Board of Revenue had shown ignorance of the registration of the Landhi Cottage Industries Scheme. The public prosecutor countered, by stating that we have no record of any such scheme.

The court ordered the Member Board of Revenue to appear at the next hearing and remarked that the BoR member should come and inform about the status of the land.

The counsel representing the petitioner argued that in 1993, the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) had allocated over 2,300 plots in Landhi for cottage industries. However, since then, the petitioners have not been able to take possession of the land. The encroachers have illegally occupied the land and constructed cattle pens.

The Board of Revenue representative contended that this particular land was never designated for cottage industries. The public prosecutor highlighted that the land had been allocated to different people, resulting in multiple civil suits being filed regarding the land dispute.

Usman Farooq Advocate argued that the petitioners should be given the possession of the same land that was allotted to them. Considering that the petitioners have already made payments for the land, they hold the rightful entitlement to it.

It is alleged that the Board of Revenue is erroneously allotting land under the Gothabad scheme. In the case of Talat Ejaz before the Supreme Court, it was determined that the Board of Revenue could not cancel the land once allotted. The court adjourned the hearing and served contempt notice on the senior member of the Board of Revenue.

Plea against society administrator

Another hearing took place before the same bench to address the petition filed against the Fishermen Co-operative Society administrator's refusal to step down after the expiration of his tenure.

Muhammad Vawda Advocate, representing the petitioner, argued that Zahid Ibrahim is not only disobeying court orders but also creating confusion by submitting multiple petitions.

Furthermore, Zahid Ibrahim prevented the court Nazir from performing his duties. Consequently, the registrar had directed a two-member committee to oversee the society's operations. However, Zahid Ibrahim did not give the charge to the appointed committee and instead issued a notification in his own favour with the section officer.

The court has issued an order for the removal of administrator Zahid Ibrahim from the Fishermen Cooperative Society, along with suspending the notification. The court has instructed the two-member committee appointed by the Registrar to continue overseeing the operations of the society.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 7^th, 2024.