HYDERABAD: A division bench of Sindh High Court (SHC) Hyderabad circuit on Thursday restrained the Sindh government and Hyderabad district administration from preventing vegetable and fruit traders from carrying out their lawful businesses/trade in the existing Sabzi Mandi.

The bench, comprising Justice Mohammad Faisal Kamal Alam and Justice Aftab Ahmed Gorar, said the respondents should ensure that no one be allowed to create any law and order problem.

The order was passed on a constitutional petition filed by Abdul Rasheed Arain and Zahid Arain who moved the court through Ayaz Tunio advocate. They cited the Sindh agriculture secretary, additional chief secretary, Hyderabad division commissioner, agriculture extension director general, Hyderabad deputy commissioner, Hyderabad Development Authority (HDA) director general, market committee administrator, inspector general of police (IGP) Sindh, Hyderabad Police DIG, Hyderabad SSP and Hali Road police station SHO as respondents.

Mr Tunio argued that the respondents were required to establish a proper fruit and vegetable market (Sabzi Mandi) according to master layout plan as certain spaces were allotted to persons. He said the respondents, however, were illegally changing the nature of above market into a housing scheme as evident from correspondence dated Dec 31, 2019.

He also said that in violation of an earlier order passed by this court and particularly of Dec 1, 2016 in another constitutional petition wherein inter alia respondents had stated to provided complete infrastructure at the New Sabzi Mandi, it is now learnt that respondents particularly respondent-8 has also made double allotments in the above project.

He said that to aggravate the situation, additional chief secretary (home) imposed Section 144 CrPC in the existing Sabzi Mandi, thus banning auction activity. The step was affecting livelihood of the petitioner and other bona fide allottees.

The court issued notices to the respondents and additional advocate general for Feb 26, directing them to file para-wise comments by the next date of hearing. In the meantime, the court ordered, “petitioners and those who are genuine allottees/occupants in the existing Sabzi Mandi would not be prevented from carrying out their lawful businesses/trade”. However, it said, respondents should ensure that no one be allowed to create any law and order problem.

The petitioners stated that 63.1 acres of land was acquired for “zarai/anaj mandi” in 1980-84 and a gazette was issued for this purpose in Oct 1984. Each trader paid Rs5,000 and in 1994, the market committee chairman also purchased 6-9 acres of land.

They said the Asian Development Bank (ADB) offered loan in 1990-91 for establishing fruit markets. A feasibility report was prepared by the Bureau of Supplies and Prices Department of the Sindh government for a market on 26 acres out of 72 acres of land. A PC-I was also approved for that. They said the remaining 46 acres was meant for anaj mandi.

Construction of market started in 1993 and in 1994, market committees were placed under administrative control of the agriculture department through an amendment by Sindh Assembly. They said that in 1996, the government dissolved the market committees and appointed an administrator.

They said that 900sq ft plots of A-category were allotted as per PC-I and then layout plan was revised six times to make alterations in A-category plots, masjid, auction platform, toilets, parking, bank, rest house, restaurant, post office, dispensary and other facilities. They said that all those plots were sold to different parties as residential plots.

They said administrator Shaukat Mastoi without preparing feasibility report and approval of PC-I sold the remaining 46 acres of anaj mandi in the name of new fruit and vegetable market project phase-2 while revising the plan and converting big plots into smaller ones. They said that the same plots were sold through estate agents by way of “china cutting” and one plot was sold to multiple buyers to mint money.

They said that a plot of masjid admeasuring 31,000sq ft was converted into 21,320sq ft. They said the home department on Jan 28 imposed a ban on auction in the old Sabzi Mandi from Jan 29. They said that livelihood of the petitioners and other traders was at stake if Section 144 was imposed and hundreds of people would be rendered jobless as entire fruit and vegetable business would be destroyed.

They asked the court to direct the respondents to restore the status of new fruit and vegetable market in line with approved PC-I which was funded by the ADB. The court should declare imposition of Section 144 as illegal and appoint an officer as commissioner to visit the site of the new Sabzi Mandi.

Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2020