Express News screengrab shows KMC's demolition operation in Chakra Goth area of Karachi on April 2, 2014.
According to residents, they were not given any notices before the demolition operation in which at least six properties were demolished.
Residents protested holding documents which they said confirmed their ownership of the plots for which some of them claim to have paid Rs400,000 to Rs450,000. Residents also claimed to have verified the documents with relevant authorities.
According to KMC Anti-Encroachment Task Force Chairperson Bilal Manzar, the land was illegally occupied by land mafia and then sold with fraudulent documents.
He said that there were only seven to eight families residing in the area and their homes were not demolished but they were given notices to evacuate in one week. He added that only properties that were not currently occupied were demolished.
He informed Express News that two demolition operations had already been conducted in 2012 and 2013. Boundary walls and a sign informing that the plots were amenity plots for a university were erected by KMC in 2012, which had been removed by the land mafia, he added.
To a question about why the department had not prevented the illegal encroachment from occurring in the first place, he said that the staff he had at his disposal was not enough to monitor and prevent every illegal encroachment in a city the size of Karachi.
“If there are any KMC officials involved, we will take action against them,” he said. “I am only implementing a Supreme Court order.”
He added that KMC’s move should not be criticised as it was reclaiming land from illegal occupation for its intended purpose.
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