The official said that according to the survey, of the total 492 mosques within the municipal limits of the CDA, 233 mosques were operating illegally. PHOTO: REUTERS
The Interior Ministry, after failing to take action against illegal mosques and seminaries operating in the capital, has ordered the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Administration to stem their further growth.
An official at the ICT Administration told The Express Tribune that special teams have been formed to keep a check on illegal growth of mosques, imambargahs and seminaries in urban and rural areas of the federal capital.
The official said the teams have been formed on the directives of the ministry, which has issued strict orders to the ICT Administration to stop the expansion of illegal mosques and seminaries in Islamabad.
The official said the ICT Administration recently held a meeting, chaired by Additional Deputy Commissioner (East), Abdul Sattar Essani, with officials of the Capital Development Authority, the Auqaf Department and Islamabad Police to implement the plan.
“No one will be allowed to construct a mosque, a seminary or an imambargah illegally on a state property,” said the official, who had attended the meeting, while wishing not to be named.
According to him, the officials of the three departments agreed to work together to put a ban on the illegal practice. He said that the CDA put in place a robust regime to protect its land, which in the past has been occupied for such purposes.
The officials of the three departments also agreed to hold a monthly meeting to review progress on the issue.
During the meeting, the CDA officials also shared a survey report which it had conducted recently on the directives of the interior ministry.
The official said that according to the survey, of the total 492 mosques within the municipal limits of the CDA, 233 mosques were operating illegally.
The CDA officials told the meeting that these illegal mosques have been built on state land along seasonal streams, along major roads, on private land and the CDA-owned land.
According to CDA officials, of these illegal mosques, 131 belong to the Barelvi school of thought, 88 belong to Deobandis, nine belong to Ahle Hadith, four belong to Fiqh-e-Jaafria and one is run by the Jamatud Dawa.
Another official of the ICT Administration said that special branch and security agencies have also shared their survey reports but they contradict each other in terms of number.
The official said that in rural areas revenue officers, secretaries of union councils and police will monitor illegal constructions regularly and submit reports to the ICT Administration for further share with interior ministry to taking action.
When contacted, Essani confirmed that a special meeting was held recently and it has been decided to stop growth of illegal constructions on state property. He said that teams have been bound to monitor such illegal activities. “The administration will demolish construction of mosques, imambarghas, seminaries, churches if they are found to be built illegally,” he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 20th, 2015.
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