Rangers to remove encroachments

If govt is seriously committed to reclaiming its land, it must ensure it takes back from its ‘dedicated’ task force.

The Sindh government’s decision to deploy Rangers’ personnel to help reclaim the encroached land is a move that may finally yield some results, but these results will come at the cost of undermining the role of certain institutions, such as the Sindh police, and awarding unnecessary powers to others, such as the Rangers. At a recent Supreme Court hearing, the Sindh Board of Revenue had submitted a report claiming that 59,800 acres of government land in the province have been occupied by groups such as the Defence Housing Authority and the Malir Development Authority. Since these are large organisations in their own right, any intimation by the government to reclaim the land goes unheeded.

Given that land is a precious asset for the government and can be used by it to help the citizens by, for example, establishing parks and other facilities, it is good to see the government finally taking concrete steps to reclaim such land. Since our police force is notorious for being extremely politicised, it is probably a good idea to seek the Rangers’ help, as they are one force that is still considered somewhat apolitical. Asking the paramilitary soldiers to take action against the encroachers leaves greater chances for the government to get the land back.

However, we must not forget that reclaiming encroached land and establishing the writ of the government is the task of the police — a civilian body that works under the elected government. Removing it of its role and seeking the help of an ‘unelected’ force, undermines the role of democracy in the country. It also absolves the police of their due role. Hence, the government should try to fix the law enforcers and hold them accountable when their officials are found involved in illegal occupation of public land.  Moreover, it is naïve to assume that the Rangers are the best solution to this problem. There are several cases in Karachi where the paramilitary force is occupying government land, such as buildings for schools and hostels. If the government is seriously committed to reclaiming its land, then it must ensure that it takes back land from its ‘dedicated’ task force.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 6^th, 2014.

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