MURREE: Land belonging to the Auqaf department must be retrieved and millions of rupees in outstanding dues must be recovered from contractors, provincial Auqaf Secretary Zulfikar Ghumman said at a meeting of the department.

Mr Ghumman, who holds additional charge as chief administrator, said commercial plazas should be built to generate income for the department in every zone. He also urged for the mosque at GPO Chowk in Murree to be renovated, the shops near which are a major source of income for the department.

Two shrines in Potha and Tret have been encroached upon by local influential figures who are using millions generated from charity, but the department has failed to retrieve either site.

The shrine of Dada Malik Sooraj Khan, the forefather of the Abbasi tribe, in Potha was taken over by the Auqaf department in 1968 but control of the shrine was taken over by local influential figures a few years later in 1972.

The department was able to take control of the shrine since in the 46 years since until 2018, when department staff with the help of the local administration and police took over. They surrendered control to the local figures again eight days later. The shrine receives millions in charity from pilgrims who visit annually.

The shrine of Baba Bhudu Shah in Tret was given on a contract to a local contractor, who did not hand over control of the shrine after his contract ended. He instead went to court and the issue remains in litigation, a source in the Auqaf department told Dawn.

Around 24 kanals of Auqaf land in Barra Hoter village is also of little use to the department, as it is scattered in many khasra numbers and occupied by various encroachers, sources said.

The department currently controls the Lower Topa shrine of Bab Mast Qalandar, the Munawar Shah shrine in Chara Pani and the mosque at GPO.

Mr Ghumman told Dawn that outstanding dues would be recovered urgently and Auqaf land is being retrieved from encroachers.

He said it was very unfortunate that political support for encroachers in the past was the biggest obstacle to retrieving land, adding that the new government had launched a campaign against encroachers and encroached upon shrines in Murree would be recovered as well.

Published in Dawn, April 3rd, 2019