Ombudsman settles land-grabbing cases

LAHORE:On personal intervention of Punjab Ombudsman Major (Retd) Azam Suleman Khan, two different cases of land grabbing in district Jhang were settled down, retrieving property valuing over Rs5 crore.

The total area retrieved from the land grabbers was 243 kanal 3 marla valued Rs5 crore 66 lac 16 thousand 250. Similarly, a relief of Rs4 crore 47 lac 51 thousand 954 was also provided to different complainants against various applications.

On the directions of Ombudsman Major (R) Azam Suleman Khan during last two weeks, a big relief amounting Rs10 crore 13 lac 68 thousand 204 has been provided to the complainants of various districts. In this regard, the major beneficiaries of such relief was Sharafat Abbas from district Jhang who submitted a complaint regarding illegal occupation on state land of 166 kanal and 17 marla.

This land was occupied by the land grabbers for the last 47 years and they used to earn a handsome income without paying tithes to the government. The occupied land was retrieved on the direct intervention of the Ombudsman having market value of Rs3 crore 75 lac 41 thousand 250. Similarly, another grabbed land of 76 kanal and 6 marla was also retrieved from illegal occupants, on the request of a complainant Muhammad Azam Tariq of district Jhang.

According to his application, the grabbed land was used as pastures. The market value of this retrieved land was 1 crore 90 lac 75 thousand rupees. Various other applications received from Lahore, Sargodha, Bahawalpur, Jhang, Toba Tek Singh, Rahim Yar Khan, Multan, Vehari, Mianwali, Faisalabad, Narowal, Khushab and Gujrat districts. These complainants were also provided relief of rupees 4 crore 47 lac 51 thousand 954 against their applications pertaining to bill payments, pension, gratuity, death grants, leave encashment, and financial assistance.