ISLAMABAD, Sept 23: An under-construction flower market at F-10 Markaz has been encroached upon and inaugurated without informing Capital Development Authority (CDA), sources told Dawn.

The market, they said, was inaugurated by Rawalpindi District Nazim Raja Tariq Kiani on the invitation of former president of F-10 Markaz Traders Association, Malik Zahoor.

Some seven flower shops were being constructed by the CDA to accommodate those flower sellers who had been running their businesses in the area since 1998. They had been given written permission by the authority to continue working on temporary basis with the assurance that they would be accommodated in the flower market.

However, some days ago, former president of F-10 Markaz traders association, Malik Zahoor and his friend, Saif Ullah, managed to get the construction work stopped through a stay order and occupied all shops, some flower sellers told Dawn.

Flowers Sellers Union (FSU) president Mohammad Ashraf said the stay order had been obtained from the court of a senior civil judge, Islamabad, on September 10, on the plea that a CDA official intended to allot the shops to non-deserving people, he added.

They, then, organized an inauguration ceremony of the flower shops on Sunday, Mr Ashraf added.

When contacted, a CDA official said they had not been informed about the inauguration of the flower market. Those who currently occupy the shops, have not taken any permission by the CDA, he said.

“There is a proper procedure of allotment of CDA shops, which has not been adopted in this case,” he said.

Some flowers sellers, working in the area on temporary basis, said they had been running their businesses at F-10 Markaz for last six years, but the people who were not members of the FSU had encroached upon the market.

On the other hand, the occupants of the shops said they had been running these shops for last many years. They said the CDA chairman, Mir Laiq Shah, had promised them that the authority would construct a permanent flower market in the area for them.

They also claimed that the CDA officials concerned had give them verbal permission to start businesses in the shops. However, the CDA official refuted the claim of the occupants, asking how could the authority give permission to run under- construction shops?