The blocks can accommodate up to 350 people and were constructed for government employees in 1997. However, no one took ownership of the block ever since their construction. This led to various groups moving in illegally. The situation worsened during the Lal Masjid operation when the blocks were used to shelter the police and rangers. When the operation ended, these police officers and rangers did not vacate the building.
Meanwhile, the buildings’ maintenance is being ignored. With broken doors and windows, leaking pipes and faded paint, the apartments present a shabby look. Some bulbs along with other electrical fittings have been stolen. The police officials said that they had to pay for the renovations from their own pockets, as there was no department where they could get their complaints registered.
There are 15 blocks, each with four floors. Each apartment has three rooms and there are nine people living in each apartment.
Talat Hussain, a policeman who said he was living in the apartments since 2008, told The Express Tribune that personnel from Punjab constabulary and rangers stayed in the blocks during the Lal Masjid operation. “Once they moved out, we moved in,” he said.
A police official from Khyber Pukhtunkhwa added another dimension to the story, claiming it to be a case of institutionalised encroachment. Muhammad Iqbal said, “We were directed by our department to shift here.”
Moreover, those living in the blocks illegally have also been accused of renting out flats to other tenants.
A person living in the apartment, on condition of anonymity, said, “I have been living here since the past one year and I pay the rent to a police officer.”
When the housing ministry was contacted on the matter, a high official who did not want to be named said, “It is a fact that there are police officers living there illegally, but this is not our concern as we do not own the building. If the building is handed over to the ministry, then we will see what we can do.”
Capt Mohammad Faiz Di-rector Enforcement CDA said, “There is nothing being planned so far by the CDA to deal with this encroachment. No one is willing to take ownership, not the CDA and not the ministry.”
However, Faiz was of the view that the civic authority could not just invade the building and force people out of it. “We cannot take any action unless the ministry and police along with the CDA take a decision on it,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, an official from Islamabad Capital Territory was also not in favour of a single-channel solution to the matter. “CDA should write to the ICT administration. Only then we would be able to take direct action against them,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 8th, 2010.
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