SC gives KDA two days to clear public parks of encroachments

Taking exception to the allotment of amenity plots across the city for commercial purposes, the Supreme Court directed the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) on Monday to remove all encroachments and illegal constructions from public parks within two days.

Hearing the petition of one Sabiha Parveen against non-compliance of court orders, the SC’s two-member bench headed by Justice Gulzar Ahmed observed that amenity plots in the city had been allotted to private individuals.

The bench asked the KDA land director why public parks were being used for marriage ceremonies and if the metropolis was developed for only marriage halls, observing that it was difficult to breathe in a city where public parks had been encroached and no greenery remained.

The bench said the SC had also ordered in 2011 that all encroachments and illegal constructions be removed from public parks and playgrounds, with the direction to implement it in letter and spirit.

The court lamented that no ground was left at Kashmir Road for the children who used to play cricket in the vicinity, directing the KDA to remove all encroachments and illegal constructions from public parks.

The bench ordered clearing parks in the localities of North Nazimabad, Kashmir Road and University Road, observing that action would be taken against delinquent officers if encroachments from public parks were not removed.

The petitioner submitted that the court had ordered allotting her a plot in North Karachi’s Sector 11-A, but the KDA gave the plot to someone else and allotted her an amenity plot.

The bench took exception to the conduct of the KDA deputy director who allotted an amenity plot to the petitioner instead of giving her a plot in North Karachi as per the court’s order, observing that such an official should be sent to prison.