HYDERABAD, Oct 29: DCO Mohammad Hussain Syed has written a letter to City Taluka Nazim Moinuddin Sheikh, asking him not to enter into any contract or transaction for sale or disposal of the TMA property.

It was learnt here on Friday that the DCO had referred to three letters to the nazim issued from the Sindh local bodies department regarding the proposed construction of commercial-cum-residential buildings over the Market fire brigade plot, the TMA office and Tonga stand plots.

The DCO referred to a letter (Aug 18) issued by the local government department, calling for a moratorium on construction of plazas. The Sindh governor had also endorsed the move.

The DCO said that inviting bids for the construction of complexes over government property was tantamount to legal action. He quoted section 10(2) of the Sindh Disposal of Urban Land Ordinance 2002 regarding "disposal of amenity plot" which says "no amenity plot will be converted to or utilized for any other purpose than for which it reserved".

The section 124 of the SLGO 2001 specifies that properties of the local government should only be used in the people's interest. The DCO said the disposal of the TMA properties was against the law and people's interest and that it was advisable that the nazim should not enter any contract or transaction for sale and disposal of the property.

He stated that in any matter concerning financial and fiscal transactions, the TMO should be taken in confidence as he was the chief accounting officer. It may be recalled that a five-member committee comprising members of the Taluka city council including Qamaruddin Sheikh, Iqbal Sheikh, Iqbal Qaimkhani, Ghaffar Shah and Qari Niaz and the general secretary of the CBA union Akram Rajput had supervised the process of bidding on Aug 28.

Three firms -- Classic, Karsaz and Arif Builders -- had offered bids of Rs41 million, Rs36.5 million and Rs55 million, respectively, for constructing plazas on the plots.