TOBA TEK SINGH: The tehsil municipal administration (TMA) staff sealed 55 out of the total 90 shops located in Junaid Market on Gojra Road near railway underpass.

The market was built 11 years ago when previous shops were demolished during widening of the road, and in compensation shopkeepers were given alternate land. The market was named after PML-N MNA Junaid Anwaar Chaudhry.

Tehsil Municipal Officer Rana Ghulam Dastagir claimed that in 2006 when the TMA had increased the rent of shops, their owners had managed to get a stay from the Lahore High Court, but in 2009 the petition was rejected by the court. He claimed that shopkeepers kept the TMA in the dark regarding rejection of the petition and delayed payment of rent for seven years on the pretext that they had got a stay.

He added that rejection of the petition was revealed a few months ago when land record of the city was being computerised by the revenue department.

TMA Administrator Zeeshan Shabbir Rana claimed that on one hand the shopkeepers were not paying Rs2,000 rent per shop and on the other most of them had further rented out their shops at Rs3,000 to Rs5,000 a month.

The shopkeepers claimed they were not issued any notice by the TMA before sealing of their shops and they had been rendered jobless now.

Published in Dawn, July 30th, 2016