Traders protest anti-encroachment campaign

MANSEHRA: The business community on Wednesday observed a complete shutter down strike and thronged the streets in protest against the anti-encroachment drive launched by the district administration.

“We cannot allow the district administration to take away goods placed outside the shops and remove handcarts depriving vendors of livelihoods,” Shakeel Awan, the president of traders’ body, told the protesters assembled here in the city.

The traders staged a protest after the joint team of district administration and Tehsil Municipal Administration, led by Assistant Commissioner Fatima Muniba, removed goods from outside shops on Kashmir Road.

The protesters raised slogans against the district administration and demanded the halting of the so-called encroachment drive.“The anti-encroachment squad dragged and overturned handcarts depriving vendors of saleable fruit, vegetables and other items which is unacceptable to us at any cost,” Haroonur Rasheed, the former president of the central traders’ body, said.

He threatened the administration to widen their agitation if it didn’t unseal shops and return handcarts to their respective vendors.The provincial deputy president of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, Kamal Saleem Swati, also spoke on the occasion.

“The vendors who earn respective livings on their handcarts should be allotted an appropriate piece of land for their business,” he said.He said if the district administration planned to launch an anti-encroachment drive anywhere in the city and its suburbs, it should first serve contravenes with notices.

Assistant Commissioner, Revenue, Usman Khan later in the day held talks with protesting traders and assured them that the administration would serve notice before launching operation and allot separate places for handcart vendors.