Illegal encroachment: Demolition squad goes after housing around Abdullah Shah Ghazi

At protest people feared that land will be sold to developers.

KARACHI: Tenants of state-owned accommodations near the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine protested on Thursday and stopped officials from razing their houses, officials told The Express Tribune.

The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) wants to level the houses and apartments to rebuild them properly, claimed Abdul Malick, the director of enforcement.

“We haven’t taken any action yet. We went there only to convince them that it’s for their own good,” he said. “But very soon, our bulldozers will move in. That is how we removed the shops in the same area that were haphazardly built.”

But the houses are not illegal. They belong to the Auqaf department, which is responsible for maintaining shrines in the province. Every shrine had attached flats, rooms and cabins, which have been allotted to different people.

No one was immediately available from the Auqaf department for comment but officials said that the use of force has become imperative as more and more people have built accommodations in the vicinity.

The flats and houses are located right behind the shrine where meals are cooked for hundreds of people daily. Locals fear that once evicted, the houses will be sold to property developers.

There are 78 shrines in Sindh and with 1,625 flats and 2,135 shops, according to the Auqaf department. The enforcement department normally takes action against encroachments.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 13^th, 2012.