August 11, 2008	Monday	Sha’aban 8, 1429

KARACHI, Aug 10: A Supreme Court bench comprising Justice Ijaz-ul-Hassan and Justice Syed Yawar Hussain Jaffery has ordered issuance of notices to the respondents of a constitutional petition against allotment of a piece of land carved out from the Trans Lyari Park, previously known as Gutter Baghicha, to the KMC Officers Society.

The petition, CP-210 of 2008, was filed by some NGOs, including the Shehri – Citizens for a Better Environment, and the respondents include the City District Government Karachi.

The hearing has been put off to a date in office.

The petitioners’ lawyer, Naeemur Rehman, submitted to the court that Gutter Baghicha was one of the oldest parks of the city and that the piece of land in question was allotted to the KMC Officers Society and others illegally.

Spread over 480 acres, the Baghicha is shown in the old city maps as “municipal gardens” situated in Old Golimar locality of Trans Lyari on Manghopir Road. In 1993, the (now defunct) KMC had allotted the land to its officers and some builders. However, following protests by citizens, the Sindh government had cancelled the allotment in 2001 and the matter was also referred to the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) for a probe.

In the same year, President General Pervez Musharraf, addressing a gathering, announced that the government would build a model park of international standards on the land of Gutter Baghicha.

The previous city government had allocated funds for developing the Baghicha as a national park but some unscrupulous elements were continuing to make attempts to grab the land.

On Saturday, residents of the area staged a protest rally and blocked the Manghopir Road when some people associated with the KMC Officers Society tried to set up its office after bringing in a large-sized container for the purpose and placing it in the park’s vicinity.