Housing Ministry starts new business of forced evictions, allotments

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

* Five flats in Sector G-11 got vacated forcibly without any notice

* Operation started on pretext of complaints against renting out government houses

* Allegedly gangsters from Jhang, Sargodha being used to get the houses vacated after cancellation of allotments

* Vacated houses are being allotted against Rs 300,000 to 500,000 each with guarantee of instant possession

By Ikram Junaidi

ISLAMABAD: An influential group in Ministry of Housing and Works has started a new business of getting vacated houses form the allottees by force without giving notice and handing them over to the new allottees for Rs 3,00,000 to 5,00,000 each.

To get the houses vacated by force gangsters have been called from Sargodha and Jhang and as soon as the Housing Ministry gets vacated a house a group of gangsters enters the house and hands it over to new allottee, Daily Times learnt on Wednesday.

Sources said in many cases locks of the houses were broken in the absence of occupants and goods were shifted to Estate Office or police station and there is a possibility that people would complain that their goods had been stolen.

Ministry of Housing, which was the most favorite ministry for Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) in the past, has been now handed over to Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q). Although there was corruption in the past, now the situation has further worsened and general citizens are suffering, it is learnt.

According to sources, while Saieed Ramzan was holding charge of Estate Officer along with Deputy Secretary (DS) he had allegedly allotted houses to people and even former state minister Raza Hayat Hiraj had showed his concerns when he came to know that Saieed allotted the houses and apartments after the office timing and used Joint Secretary (JS) MB Awan. While using an accommodation in Gilgit-Baltistan House, with the approval of the JS he also managed to get allot a suite in Gulshan-e-Jinnah vide allotment letter vide F.No.FS.8/21-FSC/E-IV dated 6th of August 2011.

For the last 15 days the Ministry of Housing and Estate Office have started an operation in sector G-11 on the pretext of getting vacated houses rented out by allottees, said the sources, adding, so far over 20 apartments have been gotten vacated by the team comprising gangsters from Sargodha and Jhang, police officials and an inspector of Estate Office. They said the ministry had started operation on the pretext of complaints against renting out of the apartments. They said the ministry after canceling the allotments of apartments was allotting them to new persons. They said some apartments were locked and team of officials and private persons broke the locks and shifted the household items to Shalimar Police Station or Estate Office.

Sources said DS Admin Saieed Ramzan belonged to Jhang and Minister had especially transferred him from Lahore to the Housing Ministry. They said another person very active in the operation was Director Malik Iqbal who belonged to Sargodha and calling gangsters from Jhang and Sargodha made a sense. They said Deputy Director Nauman Shah was also behind the operation and JS MB Awan had been silent on it, which shows that he has given its approval.

An officer of the Ministry requesting not to be named said that high-ups of the Ministry had started allotment by allegedly taking Rs 3,00,000 to 5,00,000 for each house or apartment and give assurance to the allottee that they would manage possession to him. According to rules whenever Estate Office comes to know that some allottee has rented out the house, a notice should be send to him, but presently the team has been doing operation without issuing any notice, said the sources.

Recently five flats of category V located in Block 56-B sector G-11 have been got vacated by force. On Tuesday the team entered apartment No 1 of Block 5 in which a female was residing and threw the goods outside the house. The team also tortured the female due to which over 150 persons protested against the operation and alleged that the operation was being conducted for money and to accommodate the close-ones. They said how private persons were being used in the operation and if they hurt some one or stole the precious things, who will be responsible for that.

Malik Iqbal has reputation of working with the minister for housing, said the sources, adding, he was CDA Director Revenue and when the minister got the charge of Environment Ministry he went there and also remained in Ministry of Interior and now he has been appointed as Director Coordination in Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation (FGEHF) and attached with the minister. Deputy Director Numan Shah’s parent organization is National Assembly and he was appointed as Speech Editor but he got appointed as FGEHF DD Coordination and became staff officer of the minister. Both Iqbal and Numan have got allotted apartments of PHA on concessional rates, which shows their influence in the Ministry.

Minister of Housing and Works Faisal Saleh Hayat is likely to return from abroad today (Thursday) and Federal Secretary Kamran Lashari was supposed to come on Wednesday night. Sources said that now it was up to them whether they handle the affairs of the ministry or not, as JS MB Awan had failed to address the complaints of citizens and controlling the corruption.