KARACHI: The Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) on Thursday sealed a part of the supermarket located along Rashid Minhas Road for violating its approved building plan by using its basement for commercial activity instead of parking for more than a year after it became operational, said a notification issued by the regulatory body.

It said that the Imtiaz Supermarket, which had been running its business on the key road link of the city for over a year, was found violating the prescribed rules and using government’s land for its customers instead of allowing them to park their vehicles within the building.

The SBCA action came a day after the Supreme Court-mandated commission on water quality and sanitation in Sindh granted one month’s time to the owner of the supermarket to shift the parking site from the Lyari riverbed to his own property.

“The subject premises is hereby sealed under Section 7-A of the Sindh Building Control Ordinance 1979-82 (amended up to date) by the Sindh Building Control Authority on account of “construction against the approved building plan and KB&TPR-2002,” said the notification.

“If anybody trespasses the premises or tempers the seal, he/she/they shall be punished under Section 19 of Sindh Building Control Ordinance, 1979 (amended up to due date) and other penal action permissible under the law.”

Only on Tuesday, the head of Supreme Court-mandated commission, retired Justice Amir Hani Muslim, while granting a month’s time to the owner of the Imtiaz Supermarket to shift the parking lot, warned him of stern action if parking or any other activity of his business was noticed within the riverbed area or on its bank after the stipulated time.

After the commission’s order, the SBCA also came up with the action on the same grounds -- not allowing the market’s customers to park their vehicles on its premises -- despite the fact that a parking lot was part of the approved building plan.

When asked about a delay in taking action against the illegal activity as the Imtiaz Supermarket has been running its biggest facility in the city at the same place and using the adjacent riverbed area as its customers’ parking facility for more than a year, SBCA director general Iftikhar Ahmed Kaimkhani said that the authority “takes action only after it receives complaints”.

“We have sealed only the basement of the supermarket which is being used for commercial activities,” he said, adding: “The ground and first floors of the market are open for regular business”.

According to Mr Kaimkhani, the building plan bound downs owners of a property to spare the basement only for parking but the supermarket owner violated the rule. We have sealed the basement and it will be unsealed only after the owner comes up with the assurance through an undertaking that the basement will in future be used only for the prescribed purpose.

He said the SBCA had recently received complaints from members of the general public about use of this particular portion of the Lyari riverbed for parking purpose. The order issued by the SC commission further highlighted the issue which prompted the SBCA to take an immediate action.

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2018