KARACHI: Tehreek-i-Insaf member of the National Assembly Aftab Siddiqui has highlighted the need for evolving a road map to ensure that the people living in houses built on government land should not be rendered homeless in the drive launched to get Karachi Circular Railway land cleared of encroachments.

He appealed to the judiciary also to look into the matter on humanitarian grounds.

Mr Siddiqui, elected from the NA-243 constituency, made this appeal during his meeting with the authorities concerned saying that the PTI was also keen to see the implementation of the orders of the Supreme Court for restoring Karachi’s grandeur by removing encroachments, but wanted that elected representatives be consulted and a road map prepared before rendering people shelterless.

On the SC order to remove all encroachments on the KCR land and to revive it for the benefit of commuters, the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation has finalised a plan to get vacated some 360 acres from encroachers. As many as 5,653 illegally constructed structures will be razed during the operation to get more than 29 acres of KCR land vacated.

In reply to a question, Mr Siddiqui told Dawn that after the announcement by the authorities and display of banners in the localities advising the people to remove their luggage before the demolition of their illegal structures on Railways land, there was fear among the people who converged at his office on Tuesday. He said he had taken up the matter with the authorities, including Sindh Governor Imran Ismail, but as the commissioner of Karachi, overseeing the operation, was busy with the IDEAS exhibition, the matter remained inconclusive.

However, a meeting with the deputy DS of Railways, Karachi, and the deputy commissioner materialised who agreed to have a joint meeting of the elected representatives and the authorities after the conclusion of IDEAS. He said he hoped that a solution would be found during the meeting before removing the illegal structures from Railways’ land.

He said he had conveyed his reservations to the Railways DDS about the anti-encroachment drive and suggested that a road map be given to the affected people. Mr Siddiqui said the PTI wanted that elected representatives be consulted on the issue. “We all should join hands to resolve the issue in the light of the orders of the SC without committing any excesses with the people and the problems should also be solved,” he said.

He regretted that there was no scheme to provide shelter to the people who had migrated from other cities and villages to earn their livelihood here.

Published in Dawn, November 28th, 2018