Housing scheme held hostage : Police in cahoots with land grabbers

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

By Faraz Khan

KARACHI: The land grabbers’ grip on the city continues to grow stronger owing to the support provided to them by police as well as their patronisation by various political parties.

A survey has revealed that there were police officials from top to bottom involved in this dirty business.

Talking to Daily Times, a victim revealed that contacting the police or any political personality or influential doubles the amount charged for reclaiming possession of land; therefore it is better to negotiate with the land mafia directly.

There are hundreds of stagnant projects and thousands of citizens have invested in schemes and single plots that have multiple owners.

Jinnah Town Housing Scheme, located in Sector 29, Scheme 33, within the limits of Sachal Town police is an evident example that proves how influential the land grabbers were. The 16-acre land having some 250 allottees remains under the claw of the land mafia, where men possessing weapons live in the model bungalow and do not allow the owners to start development work for the rest of the land without paying protection money of Rs 5 million.

An owner of a plot in Jinnah Town, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of life, told this scribe, “We had lodged a complaint with the Sachal police, which after a raid arrested 18 armed men from the spot and registered FIRs no 490 and 491/ 2009. But later all the criminals were released on bail and they reoccupied the bungalow. Now whenever we try to enter the area to start construction work, they fire at us.”

Moreover, the owner said the land grabbers have now established connections with a nationalist political party as well as high-ranking police officers, who have asked for twice the amount of what was demanded earlier by the land mafia in the name of resolving the matter.

The owner also said that the criminals were declared absconders by the court, which had directed the police to give the actual owners protection for starting development work on site. However, despite the court orders, the police seemed reluctant to arrest the absconders.

Further giving details of the adopted procedure to reclaim possession of the land, the owner said, “I have sent applications to the SHO, TPO, DIG, IG, chief minister, governor, Sindh High Court and the Supreme Court and various other concerned departments as well, but the area’s police does not take any action and continuously gives lame excuses to the high-ups if anybody asks them for a report.”

Both Sachal and Gadap towns are considered a goldmine in the police department because of the land grabbing business.

A police officer of Sachal Town with ‘big connections’ is considered to be the strongest man, who runs all such businesses without any fear because of his affiliations. The officer, who has been given more protocol than the IG or CCPO, also has an entourage of private and personal security guards and expensive vehicles.