Karachi's Sunday Bazaar demolished

DHA claims Sunday Bazaar administration was warned of the demolition, contrary to shopkeepers' claims

KARACHI: One roll over by a bulldozer and Karachi’s largest makeshift market, Sunday Bazar, turned into rubble in the wee hours of Monday.

Defence Housing Authority silently demolished over 2,000 stalls that dotted the popular market leaving behind a rubble of belongings and destroying the livelihood of thousands.

While shopkeepers claim they were not warned prior to the demolition, Defence Housing Authority said the Sunday Bazaar administration was, in fact, warned of the demolition due to expiration of their contract.

Read: Sunday bazaar was closed for maintenance: DHA

“Had we been informed earlier, we could have saved our belongings,” Asif, a shopkeeper said. He claimed he lost Rs100,000 worth of objects stored away in his stall.

“I did not even once think while closing my shop, that it would not be there the very next day.”

Disappointed, the shopkeepers admitted having knowledge of the expiration of the contract between Sunday Bazar administration and the DHA. However, they claim, they were pacified with a promise the market would continue to run until a new site was assigned.

Despite the promise, no one, perhaps not even the administration, was notified before the leveling of the shops.

Asif claimed when the shopkeepers tried to approach the authorities, they were denied access.

“Nobody will listen to you until 72 hours,” he said, quoting an unidentified official.

However, DHA spokesperson Major Aurangzeb denied all the claims.

“The agreement with the Sunday Bazar administration expired on December 31, 2014,” he said.

Read: The kinds of people you will definitely encounter at Sunday Bazaar!

“Despite this, the authority gave ample time to the market administration to remove their shops from there,” he added.

Major Aurangzeb further claimed, Sunday Bazaar’s administration was notified several times but they did not pay any heed.

“If there’s any loss to the shopkeepers, the contractor is responsible.”

The spokesperson advised shopkeepers to contact their contractor as he was informed prior to the incident.

“Furthermore, it was a private property where the market was installed temporarily. The DHA was being pressurised by the plot owners, who wanted to construct houses there.”

Responding to a question regarding denying shopkeepers and media access to the market, Major Aurangzeb said, “No one has been barred. Anybody can go there.”