19 May 2004	Wednesday	28 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1425

KARACHI, May 18: The Gulshan Town police totally ignored the standing orders of Sindh police inspector general, issued to the force, to not to encroach upon any civic or private land for constructing police stations or for any other structures for police's use.

The police, on the pretext of making security arrangements for themselves, have started constructing boundary walls at several places in the city. They have expanded the already encroached upon area at Gulistan-i-Jauhar DSP office and have covered the pavement, denying the rights to pedestrians.

The Gulshan-i-Iqbal police had encroached upon an abandoned office of a builder, more than a year ago, on main University Road, opposite Safari Park, and it was converted into the office of DSP, Gulistan-i-Jauhar.

The police officers, when contacted, were of the view that the fatal attack on Gulistan-i-Jauhar police station on April 4, in which five policemen were gunned down inside the police station, took place allegedly due to the non-existence of a boundary wall there.

However, the sources said that the attackers chose wee hours to attack the police station when policemen posted there were not alert enough to retaliate. Gulshan TPO Abdul Khaliq Shaikh said the wall around the police station and DSP office was being constructed for security reasons.

"It is not a police building and we will hand it over to its legitimate owners after we will get an alternative place," he said. Sindh IGP could not be reached despite repeated attempts by this scribe, as his telephone operator at office claimed that he was busy in a meeting.

It has been observed that since the attack on the Gulistan-i-Jauhar police station, the fear-stricken police across the city close doors of police stations during night hours.

Citizens from different walks of life believe that how can a force which failed to protect its own men could protect the lives and property of the common man, and what moral position they would take while stopping any citizen from encroaching upon a piece of land, when they themselves were encroaching upon footpaths, amenity plots and the land of civic agencies and individuals.

Almost a year ago, the police department had established an Estate Management Wing (EMW) to manage, acquire and dispose off the police estate in the province and to carry out a survey of those police stations, which had been built by encroaching upon private or civic land.

Police sources said the creation of the EMW was envisaged in the new police law and after its implementation, the information about police estate would be centralized.

It was decided a year back that the police department in future would purchase, sell or manage its estate through the EMW to avoid any complication or confusion, they said, adding that, however, the decision had been ignored and the EMW appeared to be idle.

The sources said that the EMW had carried out a survey in Karachi, according to which, 40 police stations in the city were found to be established by encroaching upon the land of either civic agencies or some individuals.

At some places the police stations were set up in schools, veterinary hospitals, parks or even in the structures meant for markets, they added. Police had been encroaching upon suitable pieces of land to build police stations since long, the sources said, adding that police had started building mosques adjacent to police stations at some places in a bid to protect their illegal structures from being demolished.