SUKKUR, Dec 9: The divisional superintendent (DS), Pakistan Railways, Sukkur, Mr Yaqoob Ali Zardari, along with senior officials of Sukkur railway division called on GOC Pano Aqil Cantonment the other day to present their point of view regarding the construction of 23 shops on the Railways land without the approved plan of Sukkur Municipal Corporation, which were demolished by acting Sukkur District Nazim Iqbal Pakwala on Wednesday last.
After the demolition of the shops, a controversy has erupted between the Railways officials and the district government representatives as both of them have been flexing their muscles and meeting the authorities to justify their action and counter action.
This correspondent tried to contact the DS Railways to know about the outcome of his meeting with the GOC which remained futile.
However the divisional engineer Railways, Mr Dost Ali Leghari, confirmed that the Railways delegation had met the GOC and presented its point of view on the controversy.
The Railways authorities have deployed heavy Railway police force at the site of construction of shops and resumed construction of the shops saying that they did not need any approved plan.
This has created the chances of clash between the the Railways officials/police and the district government functionaries.
Acting District Nazim Iqbal Dawood Pakwala has declared that he would demolished the illegally constructed shops and if the Railways authorities try to rebuild them, he would again stop them.
He said that he had briefed the principal secretary of Sindh governor, Brig Zamin, who had assured him that he would brief the governor and the government would cooperate with the district government of Sukkur.
He claimed that the places of Sukkur Municipal Council were occupied by the Railway authorities without any authority and they were constructing sops there.
On the other hand the Railways officials claim that they were constructing the shops under a general policy formed by the Federal Railways Minister Javed Ashraf through which he had issued directives to utilize vacant Railways lands for income generating.
According to sources in the Railways, the DS Railways had told GOC Pano Aqil that the Railway authority had the right to construct any building on its land without any prior permission of Sukkur Municipal Corporation or any other authority.
Meanwhile the members of Sukkur District Council have requisitioned the council session to discuss the matter and the proposal to abolish the toll tax, which the railway was charging on Lansdown Bridge connecting the twin cities of Sukkur and Rohri.
About 20 councillors of Sukkur have condemned the Railways authority who have served notices to what they call encroachers of its land in the city after which they said that they were liable to get the land vacated forcibly.
Nazims of different union councils of Pano Aqil also offered support to the acting district Nazim Sukkur. They demanded of the Sindh governor and the Railways minister to intervene to resolve the dispute.