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| September 25, 2005 | Sunday | Sha'aban 20, 1426 |
Children park land ‘grabbed’
RAHIM YAR KHAN, Sept 24: A portion of the children park has been occupied by an influential figure of the town. The park, located in the heart of the town near offices of the district nazim and the DCO and in front of official residences of the EDO (R), the chief officer and the TMO, was developed some 40 years back. Women and children are also among the regular visitors to the park in the morning and evening hours.
The park started shrinking in 1982 when municipal committee chairman Mian Abdul Khaliq doled out 2,292sq feet area of the park on lease to his bosom friend Arif Dogar merely on Rs300 per month for five years ‘through an open auction’.
Again in 1982, Dogar submitted application with the municipal committee seeking extension in the duration of lease up to 35 years. In 1986, he again moved an application to the MC for the allotment of leased area of the park at market rates.
The MC had forwarded his application to the DC after getting its approval. Then MC chairman Mian Abdul Khaliq allotted his friend the leased area at Rs5,000 per marla on the orders of then Punjab chief minister Mian Nawaz Sharif. While the market value of this land was at least Rs15,000 per marla at that time. The favouritism reached its height, when the MC transferred this land in the name of Dogar’s wife in 1987.
The design plan for the allotted land was approved in 1987. Two amended design plans for construction were also approved in 1991 and 1997.
In the design plan of 1997, the total occupied area was measured as 2,780sq feet, including additional 488sq feet which was not allotted. Later, the construction on entire 2,780sq feet of land was allowed when MC administrator Akbar Durrani permitted Dogar to pay the price of additional land.
In 1998, Rana Muhammad Boota advocate had submitted an application with the DC to cancel the design plan on the ground that the constructed area was 2,293.12sq feet, which was found correct after measurement by the MC staff later on.
On this report, the MC administrator had cancelled the design plan and refunded the amount paid for the additional 488sq feet of land. Against this decision, Dogar got a stay order from court.
Then in 2001, the matter was forwarded to the DC and after the introduction of the district government system it was referred to the court of EDO (R) Khalid Mehmood Chaudhry. On Aug 31 the same year, the EDO (R) restored the design plan of 2,780sq feet on Dogar’s appeal.
On Sept 11, 2005, he raised another room towards the western wall of the park.
Rahim Yar Khan TMO Zahid Javaid said that he was in Bahawalpur when he came to know about the illegal construction of the room. The TMO said he had asked his driver Saleem in Rahim Yar Khan to inform TO (planning and coordination) Muhammad Anser, chief officer Abdul Ghaffar and land officer Muhammad Saeed about this and asked them to demolish the illegal structure.
Mr Javaid further said the construction of room had been completed and Dogar had deputed armed men there by the time his staff reached there. He said that Dogar submitted three design plans on separate occasions. In the first design plan, the total area was shown as 2,292sq feet while additional 488sq feet was included subsequently by tampering with the design plan. All this was done with the connivance of MC’s design branch staff.
He got approval for the second design plan in 1995 by MC chief officer Abdul Malik Khokhar which was cancelled by ADC(G) Akbar Durrani. Now he has got the permission of the EDO (R) to restore the design plan.
The TMO said that Dogar had occupied, on different times, more area than that he was actually allotted where he built three toilets, stairs and a lawn on the land of children park. He alleged that Dogar had already built this building in 1982, but design plans were sent for approval long after the construction in 1987.
Mr Javaid said that he converted the residential building into a hotel without getting the approval of commercial design. He had also developed a car parking area along the southern wall of the children park by grabbing 15 feet area of the road. He did this only to get approach to the main road in the northern side of the park.
The TMO said that Dogar had close links with politicians and administration in every government and nobody even thought of taking any action against him. However, he claimed that he would challenge the decision of the EDO (R) and would not allow illegal occupation of the TMA land.
To prove his statement, he said two illegal billboards were also removed by the TMA.
Tehsil officer (P&C) Muhammad Anser said that he had sent the land officer and TMA staff to stop this illegal construction on Sept 11, but the roof of the room had already been built.
He did come clean that tampering with the design plan was detected, but said that nobody could venture to raise voice against the grabber due to his links with the influential figures.
Meanwhile, Arif Dogar said that he had got a total of 2,780sq feet land on which the construction was completed. He said the construction of the room was completed on Sept 9 and not on Sept 11 while he got the stay order from court on Sept 12.
He claimed that he had the commercial design plan of his hotel approved and would soon take action against the TMA.
EDO (R) Khalid Mehmood Chaudhry claimed that he had taken a just decision on Dogar’s appeal.
Rahim Yar Khan DCO Hamid Nawaz Shaikh said the TMA had better known about the matter. However, he said that he would never allow illegal possession of the state land if the matter had been referred to him.
Some women visitors to the children park said the TMA staff and security guards of the hotel did not allow their entry into the park.
They said that they would be deprived of the only recreation facility if the illegal occupation and construction continued.
Requesting anonymity, a TMA employee said the hotel owner wanted to convert the children park into a banquet hall.
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