ISLAMABAD: All-Pakistan Alliance for Katchi Abadis, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Awami Workers Party (AWP), National Commission for Justice and Peace and other social and political organisations on Monday expressed concern on what they believed the Capital Development Authority (CDA) may resume evictions from katchi abadis in the federal capital.

However, CDA says it has not issued any eviction notice to residents of katchi abadis.

But the said alliance warned of a looming social crisis if the demolitions of informal settlements, which have made 50,000 working class people in Islamabad homeless, continue unabated.

Following an emergency meeting attended by representatives of the above-named organisations with community leaders from Allama Iqbal Colony, Rimsha Colony, Dhobi Ghat G-6/2, Muslim Colony, I-9 katchi abadi, I-10 katchi abadi, Muzaffar Colony and others, a joint statement also implored the Supreme and Federal Constitutional Court to take notice of repeated violations of stay orders against evictions.

Meanwhile, the meeting participants also wondered why the Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who reportedly intervened to halt evictions in the elite apartment complex One Constitution Avenue, did not order a similar halt to the evictions of katchi abadis and historic villages, suggesting that the government could care less about the plight of Islamabad’s working poor.

They said that if the superior courts and the political executive continue to turn a blind eye to the untold suffering of the capital’s working class, a clear signal will be sent that the CDA’s policies have approval from the highest quarters. The meeting participants noted that successive governments and the CDA have repeatedly refused to acknowledge its failure to meet the housing needs of low-income segments, which has led to the growth of katchi abadis.

The meeting participants also called upon members of both the National Assembly and Senate to take an urgent stand against demolitions, warning that the legitimacy of Pakistan’s democracy is at stake. They noted that katchi abadi residents are arguably the most important voting bloc in Islamabad, and if elected representatives who have reached the assemblies on the back of katchi abadi residents’ votes completely abandon them to the whims of the CDA then the very basis of democratic representation is hollowed out.

Meanwhile, when contacted a spokesperson of CDA Shahid Kiani on Monday clarified that CDA had not issued any eviction notice to residents of katchi abadis in Islamabad.

“CDA has not issued any eviction notice to the residents of katchi abadis in Islamabad. The CDA’s current enforcement drive is going on across Islamabad and is strictly focused on illegal construction.

Published in Dawn, June 2nd, 2026