Three people, including a child, were injured on Friday when the district government officials started demolishing shops at Abdullahpur Chowk for the construction of an underpass despite the shop owners’ stay order from the court.
The injured were taken to a hospital, where doctors said that the condition of the child was critical. The two men were reported to be out of danger. Shop owners and some residents of the area protested against the district officials saying if something happened to the child, they will be responsible.
The shop owners claimed that they had had moved a court and obtained a stay order against the demolition of their shops. On Friday, however, the officials started the demolition work pointing out that the stay order protected homes but did not include shops. They said the land belonged to the district government and the shops had been constructed illegally.
The shopkeepers said that they had taken a stay order on both houses and shops and accused the district officials of violating court orders.
They said a team of district officials had bulldozed the shops early morning without giving them a notice. They said three people who were sleeping inside were trapped underneath the rubble. They were later pulled out by Rescue teams and taken to a hospital.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 10th, 2012.
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