Auqaf dept seeks to take charge of 5 shrines

Issues notices for recovery of millions of rupees earned through offerings in Pindi

RAWALPINDI:

The Punjab Auqaf and Religious Affairs Department has directed officials to take control of five shrines in Rawalpindi.

The department has also been instructed to collect and deposit the annual income generated by these shrines into the national treasury.

Among the shrines, the Ziarat Masoom Badshah on Railway Road, currently under the control of the Pakistan Railways Rawalpindi Division, has been prioritised for immediate repossession.

Notices have been issued to the Railways Division for the recovery of Rs27 million earned from offerings at the shrine.

In Murree, the Malik Sooraj Potha Sharif Shrine, which generates an annual income of Rs7 million from offerings, has also been ordered for repossession, along with the recovery of its revenues.

Similarly, directives have been issued to regain control of the Dhok Kallu Shrine near Allama Iqbal Park on Murree Road and the Abdullah Shah Biyabani Shrine near Khanna Pul.

Additionally, on Peshawar Road, the Secretary of Auqaf has ordered the retrieval of 10 kanals of land worth billions, donated by Dr HM Rahman from Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan).

The land, bequeathed to the Auqaf Department through a written trust deed, has remained under unauthorised occupation for over 40 years. Dr Rahman, who had no heirs, had established a trust to ensure the land would serve religious and public purposes after his death.