Tenants protest at increase in rents: Evacuee property
By Aamir Shafaat Khan
KARACHI, June 26: Thousands of tenants of Evacuee Property Trust Board (EPTB) in the country have been clamouring over the phenomenal increase in rent by the board, terming it as a sheer violation of the board’s rule and regulations, which allow only 30 per cent increase in rent after every three years.
A large number of people affected by the board’s decision gathered outside the Karachi Press Club (KPC) last week, carrying placards and banners and chanted slogans to protest against the over 1,000 per cent increase in rent.
For instance, one of the notices asks Ghazanfar Ali, a tenant, to pay Rs10,000 per month from July 1, 2006, as against his previous rent of Rs1,691 per month. Another tenant Irshad Mirza has been notified by the board that his new rent from July 1, 2006 would be Rs8,000 as against Rs2,544 per month.
These tenants along with others have also been advised to submit their objections in writing to the deputy assistant administrator of the board within 15 days and in case it does not receive any objection it will be considered that the tenant is agreed to pay the enhanced rent per month.
The tenants of evacuee property have again planned to hold a protest on Thursday at the KPC and pledged to continue it till the reversal of the decision.
Some 25,000 people in Sindh are tenants of the evacuee property and real estate of the board which had been left by the migrating Hindus and minority people during the partition of the Indian Subcontinent and creation of Pakistan.
Chairman Anjuman Kiraya Daran Evacuee Trust Property Board, Atiq Mir said that in case the board did not reverse its decision, people will stop payment of rent. He claimed that 100,000 tenants in Pakistan now felt the pinch of unjustified increase in rent.
He said 90 per cent of the property of the board was in dilapidated condition all over the country. He added that the board was deviating from its 29-year old rules and regulations of collecting monthly rental and it was now sending notices with inflated amount. A 30 per cent increase in rent had been made in January 2005 and the next increase becomes due on January 2008, but the board continues to send notices to the tenants.
The government had taken over the property of migrating Hindus and formed a board in 1960 with a view to look after the interests of the poor people and to facilitate them.
Atiq said that the board thought that the house rent of the evacuee property was too low in view of current property boom prevailing in the country. He added that the board was trying to fleece the people as it had already made a similar effort in 2002. At that time, tenants had suspended payment of rent as a protest.
Deputy administrator ETPB in Karachi, Mir Vice Durrani told Dawn that actually commercial tenants appeared more irritated over the increase in rentals as compared to the residential tenants.
He said that the rents for the commercial properties had enhanced drastically in view of rising market value. In case the rent of a shop in Saddar area ranges between Rs20,000 -- 25,000 per month then the board is simply asking the tenants to pay Rs8,000--9,000 per month and not at the market value. In furniture market at Arambagh, a tenant of a small shop is paying Rs12,000--15,000 per month but the board has fixed the rate at only Rs8,000 per month lesser than the market value.
He added that the residential tenants were satisfied with the slight increase in monthly rentals. For instance, he said the board is demanding additional Rs25-35 on their Rs300 monthly rent.
However, tenants have been given the right to file an objection in case they feel unsatisfied and the board would re-adjust their rentals as per their financial status and monthly earning from their business.
Mir Vice reckoned that the board’s property was in terribly bad condition and it was not carrying out any renovation and repairs of the decades-old buildings. However, he said that the board had given the option to the tenants to initiate repairing on their own and they would not be asked to pay the rent for two months or more if possible, but tenants were reluctant to carry out renovation.
He claimed that 25,000 tenants occupy the board’s property all over the country, of which 19,000 tenants pay Rs300 per month. Out of 25,000 tenants, 4,000 tenants belong to Karachi.
