KARACHI: A sessions court has observed that chiefs of the Sindh Board of Revenue, deputy commissioner-West, Karachi police chief and their subordinate officers and officials were not only wilfully negligent, but also getting their hands dirty in facilitating illegal occupation of state land in the district.

The court order came against the backdrop of the killing of Manghopir Mukhtiarkar Ejaz Chandio, who was shot dead during an anti-encroachment operation in Surjani Town, district West, on Monday.

Additional District and Sessions Judge (West) Zulfiqar Ali, while hearing a complaint filed by a citizen about illegal occupation of a 120-square-yard plot in Hassan Brohi Goth, found out from a report filed on Nov 14 by Sindh Goth Abad Scheme’s Mukhtiarkar Yar Muhammad Mari that the plot was a state property which neither belonged to complainant Muhammad Riaz, nor respondent Sharafat Ali Kiyani.

The court added that during the hearing of the case it had become quite obvious that this government-owned property was not being taken care of and the persons to blame were, without a fringe of a doubt, were the deputy commissioner and mukhtiarkar along with their subordinates.

Officers ordered to demarcate all usurped plots in separate record

“It is a sorry state of affairs in District West where there are many such government lands which fall prey to land grabbers/ illegally procured lands become the breeding ground for unlawful buying and selling practices, thus not only ripping off innocent persons but also contributing to a spike in registration of civil and criminal cases, as well as those of murder,” remarked the judge.

The judge went on to state, “I am aware of the fact that it is the learned chairman board of revenue, secretary land utilization department government of Sindh, commissioner Karachi, member gothabad board of revenue Sindh, member land utilization department, director anti-encroachment force board of revenue Sindh, deputy commissioner west, assistant commissioner-Manghopir, mukhtiarkar gothabad, area tapedar and security forces including additional inspector general of police Karachi, DIG West, SSP West, and SHOs who are not only wilfully negligent, but also keep getting their hands dirty in facilitating illegal occupation of these lands, are not stranger to the buying and selling real estate mafia.”

The judge said: “Therefore, this court seems fit to pass this order so that starting from today courts do not clog with frivolous cases. The deafening silence of all the said government office bearers is telling of the fact that they were not only aware of the real estate grabber capturing and selling government owned property, but are also actively involved in these transactions.

“I would like to reiterate that in case the aforementioned directions in the preceding paragraph are not complied with by any of the addressed persons, then not only will the court mandate criminal proceedings against them, but also make an order in respect of their incompetence/unfitness for their offices as well as invoke departmental proceedings,” ruled the judge.

The DC-West and mukhtiarkar, field officers, etc, and the SHOs of Surjani Town, Manghopir and Gulshan-i-Maymar, Karachi commissioner, BoR chairman, and LUD secretary “with the assistance from police and security forces are ordered to demarcate diligently all of the government lands that have been usurped by the land mafia, then set them apart and segregate them”, the order read.

The court further ordered that for future reference, in case any direct complaint under illegal dispossession act is registered pertaining to this separate or segregated government land, a report shall promptly be furnished before the district courts of West so that such complaints are ‘buried at inception’.

The judge made it clear to all the officers that the only redemption available for them was to take all-out measures with integrity.

He said if not, they were only just strengthening the case against their apparent unfitness for the posts. “It is also advisable for all above to challenge this Order in the Apex Court and get it set aside only to protect themselves from the consequences of non-compliance of this order,” the judge wrote in the order.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2022