KARACHI, April 27: The Sindh High Court directed the Karachi Building Control Authority on Tuesday to demolish six violative residential and commercial buildings in Gulistan-i-Jauhar.

A division bench, comprising Justices Sabihuddin Ahmed and Muhammad Afzal Soomro, asked the police to provide all necessary assistance to the KBCA. The authority was, however, told to inform the police authorities of the operation through the advocate-general.

The six buildings are among the 45 structures alleged to have been raised in contravention of the rules and regulations. Iqbal Haider of the Muslim Welfare Movement is the petitioner in the case. All 45 buildings, spread over in various parts of the city, were inspected by the SHC nazir on a court order. They were found to have been constructed in violation of the rules as alleged.

The petition was disposed of by a division bench, comprising Justices Ataur Rahman and S. Ali Aslam Jafri, in August 2003 with a direction to the KBCA to demolish the buildings and report compliance within three months.

The petition came up for production of the compliance report on April 20 but the KBCA officials were not available when the case was called. A division bench, consisting of Justices Sabihuddin Ahmed and Muhammad Afzal Soomro, issued a bailable warrant against building controller Samit Ali Khan to ensure his presence.

As the bench took up the case on Tuesday, KBCA counsel Shahid Jamil Khan submitted that the controller was present in the court on the last date but was marked absent due to some confusion. The bench recalled the warrant and also exempted 10 other building controllers and deputy controllers who attended the day's proceedings.

On the question of compliance, the KBCA counsel submitted that no police help was available to the authority for the massive demolition operation ordered by the court. The petitioner apparently lost interest midway and did not even assist the SHC nazir in carrying out the inspection of 45 buildings in various localities.

Ejectment notices were served on the occupants but there was no response. Other civic agencies and utilities were equally indifferent. One high police officer said no help could be extended before Eid Milad-un-Nabi.

Appearing for the provincial government, Additional Advocate-General, Abbas Ali, assured the KBCA of all possible assistance if prior information was received and request for police help was routed through the AG's office.

The KBCA counsel pointed out that the petitioner had failed to implead 39 builders involved in illegal construction. The authority was unable to move against the offending builders without them being named in the court order.

The bench directed the authority to demolish the six buildings whose builders had been cited as respondents and proceed in accordance with the law in respect of the remaining 39 structures.

The buildings ordered to be wholly or partially demolished in Gulistan-i-Jauhar are built on plots FL 1, Block 1; SB 31, Block 3-A; SB 4, Block 4; FL 8, Block 4; SB 27, Block 7; and FL 2, Block 11.