SAHIWAL: Up to 132 private housing societies have been declared illegal under various sections of the Punjab Private Housing Scheme Rules of 2022 and the Punjab Land Use (Classification, Re-classification & Re-development) Rules of 2020 by the Sahiwal District Council. Sources from the planning office said that these illegal housing societies are located in Sahiwal and Chichawatni tehsils.

These societies are situated in and around surrounding villages near urban areas such as Harappa, Chichawatni, Kameer, Yousafwala, Noor Shah, Madhali Road, Arifwala Road and Pakpattan Road.

Reports said that last week, owners of three private housing colonies beat building inspectors Shaikh Umer and Shahroz Gujar for demolishing their site sales offices.

The attackers accused the inspectors of taking bribes for failing to act against illegal constructions, while the inspectors blamed the owners for not obtaining the necessary NOC and failing to pay conversion fees amounting to billions of rupees.

The district council and municipal corporation staff demolished the buildings and sales offices of Al-Haram City, Model City, and Fasil Archer on Old Harappa Road. The operation was led by Planning Officer Javed Gondal and the Municipal Planning Officer of Sahiwal. These illegal societies are situated in over 80 villages across the Sahiwal district.

RAPE: A transgender person was allegedly raped by an armed youth at his residence in Kameer Town.

The Kameer Police registered a case under sections 375A and 292 of the Pakistan penal Code on a complaint by the alleged survivor.

Reports said the two suspects forcibly entered his home near Bank Bazar.

One of them raped him while the other pointed a pistol at him and also recorded a mobile video of the assault. They threatened to make it viral if he spoke out. A medical examination was conducted of the alleged survivor at the Kameer Health Centre.

HELD: The Kasowal Police arrested a man who claimed to be the elected chairman of the Federal Coordination Peace Committee, Pakistan (FCPCP), based on a letter allegedly issued by the PML(N) federal secretariat.

The letter, presented on PML-N letterhead with the party’s official logo, was found to be forged during a police investigation.

Muhammad Ashraf Jaffri was arrested in a case under sections 468, 419, and 471 of the PPC following a complaint by Kasowal sub-inspector Muhammad Mushtaq. Last week, Jaffri visited the Kasowal police station, introducing himself as the chairperson of the FCPCP. He submitted a written application to the station house officer for security for his movements and residence, along with a forged notification dated June 22, 2024.

However, the police were skeptical of his credentials and forwarded the letter to the PML-N secretariat for verification. The secretariat refused to confirm the letter’s authenticity. When Jaffri returned to the police station to inquire about his security request, he was arrested.

Sources said Mr Jaffri is a well-known political activist of PML-N in the villages of Sanpals, near Kasowal.

Published in Dawn, October 15th, 2024