SHC orders demolition of illegal construction in Gulshan-e-Iqbal

The Sindh High Court on Friday ordered the demolition of an unauthorised construction in Gulshan-e-Iqbal and told the Sindh Building Control Authority’s director general to explain why the SBCA and its officials allowed the construction to be completed despite an interim restraining order.

The order came at a hearing of a petition against the unauthorised ground plus-three floors’ construction in Quaid-e-Azam Colony in Gulshan-e-Iqbal’s Block-4 A. The petitioners alleged that the construction was being raised without any approved building plan and regulations. They submitted that the court had already granted an interim restraining order against the construction, directing that the SBCA ensure that no illegal construction was raised in violation of the Karachi Building and Town Planning Regulations 2002.

A division bench, headed by Justice Nadeem Akhtar, observed that the respondents were directed to remove the unauthorised construction and the sub-registrar of District East was directed not to sub-lease the subject property unless the completion plan was approved by the SBCA.

The court said the SBCA submitted in its report that no building plan was filed by the private builder and the ground plus-three floors were raised without any approval of the authority. It said the Sindh Katchi Abadis Authority also submitted that the construction raised on the subject plots was illegal.

It directed the heads of utility service providing companies to immediately disconnect their supplies in respect of subject buildings. The court directed the SBCA to demolish the unauthorised construction on the subject plots within four weeks. The court also told the SBCA DG to submit a written explanation why the SBCA and its officials allowed the illegal construction to be completed despite the interim restraining order.

Commission appointed

The SHC appointed its Nazir as commissioner to inspect a plot situated in the SITE Super Highway area to examine whether the housing society had been constructed there or not.

Petitioner Amir Yousuf submitted that he was the owner of the plot measuring 0.5 acres situated at SITE Super Highway Phase-II, which was encroached and an illegal construction was being raised in name of Gulistan-e-Islam Cooperative Housing Society. He alleged that the estate engineer of the SITE area was fully aware about the encroachment, but no action was being taken.

The court observed that despite the issuance of notices to the respondents, no comments had been filed yet. It directed the estate engineer of SITE to appear before the court and file comments on the petition. The court also appointed its Nazir as commissioner to inspect the site to ascertain thestatus of the land and ascertain whether the housing scheme was being constructed on the petitioner’s land or not and to file a compliance report within three weeks.