Dilip Kumar’s house protected heritage, says govt

Petition of man claiming to be owner disposed of at Peshawar High Court

PESHAWAR:

The Directorate of Archaeology and Tourism informed the Peshawar High Court that the house of legendary actor Dilip Kumar was declared protected heritage through a notification. The court consequently disposed of the petition filed by an individual claiming to be the owner of the property and asked him to contact the directorate.
 

A division bench of justices Nisar Hussain and Roohul Amin Chamkani took up a petition filed by Haji Lal Muhammad, who says he owns the house. Directorate of Archaeology Coordinator Nawazuddin told the court demolition of the house or any kind of alteration was banned. “In light of that notification, the provincial government is no longer interested in buying the property as it will be taken over by the directorate,” he informed the court.

Not ancestral?

The petitioner claimed he was the owner of the house located in Mohalla Khudadad. Muhammad claimed Kumar’s father bought the land in 1943 and it was not his ancestral property. He also claimed the actor did not spend his childhood in the house as it was purchased 21 years after his birth.

He urged the court to de-notify Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act imposed by the provincial government on the property.

The petitioner added that on 25 July, 2014, the then archaeology director declared the house as protected heritage without fulfilling legal requirements. “I purchased the house from Muhammad Badshah and his wife Saeed Khatoon for Rs515,000 in 2008,” he said.

The house was first owned by Ghulam Mohiuddin who transferred it to Ghulam Sarwar, the father of Yousaf Khan aka Dilip Kumar, for Rs2,000. “Ghulam Sarwar then sold the property to Muhammad Yaqoob Qureshi on January 29, 1943, for Rs2000 and it came under the ownership of Muhammad Badshah, the son of Qureshi,” said the petition.

The ANP-led provincial government had imposed Section 4 on the house on the 89th birthday of Kumar and reduced the initial Rs30 million offer to Rs14.24 million. However, the petitioner refused to accept the amount. He requested the PHC to de-notify the property and allow him to use, sell or transfer it.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 8^th, 2015.