ISLAMABAD, Sept 7: Unauthorised construction of mosques is once again on the rise in Islamabad. A number of such mosques have been built hurriedly at different places in recent weeks without the authorities concerned taking notice or making any effort to stop the unlawful construction work. Public is concerned that this is happening despite what the capital went through in the aftermath of illegal structures that were allowed to be built at Lal Masjid.

Some of these structures have been built within the last few days in Sector G-11 and G-10 but the two authorities responsible to check unlawful constructions -- the local administration and Capital Development Authority (CDA) -- have been silent spectators of this illegal activity. One such structure has been raised in a compound of G-11 Markaz and the other at a roadside green belt along G-11-1 Service Road (south) where some gypsies have also established a small shanty settlement.

It has been observed that the builders of unauthorised mosques use these mosques as a cover to build residential accommodation in the adjoining space where the maulvis bring their families to live. Soon they establish a boys’ hostel also inside the mosque compound and run it as a Madressah whose students are employed as a force to resist any action against the unauthorised mosques.

Sources in the CDA said stopping illegal constructions and removing movable and immovable encroachments from state land was the responsibility of the authority’s enforcement directorate which was recently restructured with more manpower and machinery. However it seems it was not doing its job. But this is not surprising as permitting illegal mosques to come up and allowing such structures to be completed has been the CDA’s normal practice as once such a mosque becomes functional the authority can wash its hands of its responsibility on the pretext that the ‘holy’ structure could not be pulled down.

When contacted, a senior official of the CDA’s enforcement directorate, who did not want to be named, said the authority hesitated to take action against managements of unauthorised mosques to avoid possible reaction by religious clerics and students of different Madressahs.

Deputy Commissioner, Islamabad, Amir Ali Ahmad said: “Basically it was the responsibility of the CDA’s enforcement directorate to check construction of unauthorised mosques in the city.”

“We are ready to provide magisterial support to the CDA if it launches operation against building of such mosques,” he said.

Giving details about the legal procedure for building a mosque in Islamabad, the deputy commissioner said land for the mosque was allocated by the CDA and following clearance by police and intelligence agencies the notified mosque committee was permitted to construct the mosque under prescribed parameters.

According to a survey conducted by the CDA there are over 70 unauthorised mosques in different areas of Islamabad which have been constructed on state land without prior approval of the CDA and the local administration.

Last year the CDA intensified its action against unauthorised mosques but it could not remove more than seven of them due to strong reaction of clerics and following the bloody military operation at Lal Masjid. Since that operation, the CDA has been hesitating in taking further action against such mosques.

The ‘unauthorised’ mosques which were razed by the CDA last year were: Masjid Amir Hamza which was located on Murree Road, Masjid Syedna Ibn-i-Abbas on Orchard Road, another Masjid Amir Hamza at F-10/3, Masjid Syedna Ali at G-10, Masjid Umar bin Abdul Aziz at PM Staff Colony, Masjid Safha at I-8 and Masjid Umar at G-8 Markaz.

Another report prepared by the local administration said there were around 400 mosques and Madressahs in Islamabad of which 69 were unauthorised. Some of them were established on roadsides, some on green belts and some had violated building laws of the CDA, the report said.

In some cases the authority had allowed only two rooms for a mosque but violating the rules the mosque managements’ huge buildings have been constructed in their place.