rawalpindi - The Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi Bench Justice Ibad ur Rehman Lodhi yesterday reprimanded the high-ups of City District Government Rawalpindi (CDGR) and other civic bodies for not taking action against encroachments, road blocks, unauthorised speed breakers despite clear court orders.
The judge directed top bosses of CDGR, Rawal Town, Potohar Town, Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), Rawalpidni Cantonment Board (RCB) and Chaklala Cantonment Board (CCB) to submit comprehensive report with additional registrar of the court within one week about action against encroachments.
District Coordination Officer (DCO) Talat Mahmood Gondal, City Police Officer Israr Ahmed Abbasi, Acting Chief Traffic Officer Iftikhar ul Haq, RCB Executive Officer Dr Saima Shah, CCB Executive Officer Rana Muhammad Rafique, administrators of town municipalities appeared before the bench.
LHC Rawalpindi Bench Justice Ibad ur Rehman Lodhi was annoyed with the administrators for not complying with the court’s earlier order for removing encroachments from major markets and roads of the garrison city.
It was in December last year that the DCO sought two months to take action against the encroachments but so far the district authorities had done nothing.
He directed the district authorities to submit weekly reports on progress against encroachments with the court and the petition would be heard every weak regularly.
The court would again take up the case on May 19.
Showing disappointment over the reports filed by the authorities, Justice Ibad ur Rehman Lodhi observed that the ground situation differed from what the authorities had claimed in their reports.
TMA Rawal Town Administrator informed the court that the district authorities did not have sufficient manpower to take action against encroachments and plazas with no parking space. He said that the Punjab government had placed a ban on hiring of new staff even on daily wages.
Responding to his comments, Justice Lodhi asked the official to produce the notification of the Punjab government about the ban in the court. He said that the LHC would suspend the notification allowing the district authorities to hire required manpower on daily wages.
A citizen Anwar Dar, through his lawyer Inam-ur-Rahim, had knocked the door of LHC saying that the district authorities had failed to remove encroachments causing immense troubles for commuters and pedestrians.
Meanwhile, acting Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Iftikhar ul Haq has asked the shopkeepers and traders to remove all kinds of encroachments outside their shops and business centres that creating troubles for pedestrians and traffic jam.
He said that action would be taken in light of orders of Lahore High Court against those who failed to remove encroachments. Iftikhar ul Haq said this while talking to media men here yesterday.
Acting CTO said that the traders and shopkeepers should cooperate with city traffic police in removing encroachments outside the shops, business centres and from footpaths as LHC also ordered the city managers to clean the city from encroachments.
He said that the encroachments not only posing hardships for people but also causing gigantic traffic jam on daily basis.
“The shopkeepers and traders should not allow the owners of hand push carts and vendors to set up stalls outside their shops or else strict action will be taken against the traders,” he said, adding that LHC has also ordered city district government high ups to clean the roads and streets from encroachments.
