KARACHI: The Gulshan-i-Iqbal police on Thursday evening arrested a ‘land grabber’ who along with other accomplices locked a government school building and ejected pupils and teachers, who started teaching students outside the main gate of the school prompting higher authorities to intervene.

Area SHO Akhlaq Ahmed told Dawn that the police arrested the main suspect, Soda Khan, and registered an FIR (334/2018) against him under Sections 452 (house-trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint), 448 (punishment for house-trespass), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of the school headmaster, Tariq Javed.

The held suspect claimed that the land where the school (Govt Boys and Girls Primary School in Gulshan) was established belonged to his “ancestors” but he has no documents to prove his ownership of the property.

The arrested suspect also told the police that he had filed an application before the ombudsman of Sindh and the deputy commissioner East but he had not submitted any complaint before the police, added the officer.

In absence of documents of ownership, the police treated him as part of ‘land mafia’, which tried to occupy the building of the school, the SHO said.

The SHO quoting the complainant, headmaster Tariq Javed, said that the pupils were studying at the school when Soda Khan along with other persons arrived there.

Since some construction work was going on inside the school, the suspect allegedly threatened the contractor and also used abusive language.

The alleged land mafia men forcibly ejected the pupils and teachers from the school, who resumed lessons outside its main gate.

The school administration informed the higher authorities and the police concerned who rushed to the spot and broke the lock open and brought the pupils back inside the school.

Published in Dawn, August 3rd, 2018