COUNTLESS people have been affected by the rather deliberate delay in the processing of sublease documents by certain builders active in Karachi. It has been over a year — in many cases, even two years — since the property-owners have completed all the required formalities, including full payment to the said builders, for the sublease of their properties.

Yet, these builders have failed to submit the required challan or documentation to the sub-registrar office, thereby obstructing the legal sublease process. As a result, lawful property ownership remains hanging in the balance for many people.

This blatant disregard by this mafia of builders, coupled with a lack of oversight by the relevant regulatory authorities, has turned the situation into a systemic failure. The mafia appears to be exploiting this loophole by redirecting funds collected for subleasing towards other private and commercial projects, completely ignoring the rights of the existing owners.

Unfortunately, there are little to no checks and balances from the Sindh government or the local authorities. No accountability mechanisms are being enforced, leaving the people frustrated. It is the duty of the provincial government and its various agencies to immediately audit and clear all pending sublease files at the relevant office.

They must investigate and penalise builders who have taken payments, but have failed to fulfil their legal responsi- bilities. As such, they should also enforce the regulations to ensure that sublease processing timelines are followed, and any deliberate delay should entail strict serious legal consequences for all those who fail to adhere to the regulations.

Syed Farhan Ahmed Qadri
Karachi

Published in Dawn, July 28th, 2025