Naeem, Tessori bury the hatchet over Jefco Ground

The disagreement between the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori over the Jefco Ground in North Nazimabad was resolved on Friday as the former agreed to restore the ground to its original shape during his visit to the Idara Noor-e-Haq, the Karachi JI headquarters.

The city chief of the JI, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, welcomed the governor and discussed with him various issues pertaining to development of the mega city. Following the meeting, Tessori and Rehman held a joint press conference, in which the governor said an unpleasant situation had arisen because of a misunderstanding and communication gap and now the issue had been resolved amicably.

He also thanked the JI leader for extending him an invite to visit the Idara Noor-e-Haq. Tessori stressed the need for working jointly for the betterment and development of the city. He said he agreed with Rehman that the population of Karachi was over 35 million and had already raised his concern over the census results.

He added that resources of the city and the province had been plundered in a systematic way and the system needed to be put to an end.

Karachi supported the economy of the entire Pakistan but its own progress and development had been halted for the past several decades, the governor remarked. He expressed the hope that over 25 million US dollars would be added to the foreign reserves of the country in the days to come and 30 per cent of the total inflows would be invested in Karachi.

Rehman clarified the position of the two sides and quoted the governor as saying that he just wanted to develop another park for the people of Karachi.

The JI leader said the party had launched a massive campaign and also approached the judiciary for the restoration of the Jefco Ground.

He added that as per the court decision, a piece of land allocated for a playground could not be converted for any other use nor it could be used for commercial purposes. Also in 2022, all the previous agreements for the commercial use of amenity plots had been quashed, he said.

The JI leader alleged that Rauf Siddiqui had misguided the governor on the basis of a quashed agreement under which Siddiqui intended to use the plot for monetary gains. Rehman also expressed sorrow over the unpleasant situation that occurred at the ground after the governor's arrival. He said no one should have chanted slogans against the governor.

He explained that the anger and outburst of residents of the area were against the China-cutting mafia, not the governor. The JI leader appealed to Tessori to play his due role in uprooting the corrupt system and ending the transition period for the local governments.

JI leaders Munim Zafar, Raja Arif Sultan, Rashid Qureshi, Zahid Askari, Qazi Sadaruddin and North Nazimabad Town Chairman Atif Ali Khan also attended the meeting. Earlier, Rehman had criticised the governor for attending a ceremony at the part and alleged that Tessori was helping those who wanted China-cutting on the land.