KARACHI - Riots erupted in a drive initiated by the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) ahead of the removal of illegal housing scheme Mehran Town, Korangi, left three people wounded while residents torched houses, shops, vehicles, motorbikes and other valuables to stop drive making them homeless.

According to details on Tuesday, the KDA encroachment team along with heavy machinery rushed to start the drive while residents of the area reacted and pelting with stones to prevent the KDA team sought to demolish the houses.

Heavy contingents of police also reached on the spot and tried disperse the charge crowed resorted aerial firing but residents of the area declined to retrieve. Following the situation heavy contingents of Rangers also rushed to the spot while residents of the area remains not allow authorities sought to continue the anti-encroachment drive.

Police claimed to have arrested at least three accused persons while charged mob torched at least five motorbikes, car, shops and also ransacked other valuables while erected barricades burnt tires while staged sit-in protest against the KDA officials.

A large number of protesters including women and children remains on the roads and offered massive resistance against anti-encroachment drive. The protesters said that all concern departments including the KDA patronising housing scheme for their lucrative interests and now they term the houses illegal and sought to remove the land.

Irfan Khan, a resident of Korangi while talking to The Nation told that poor families were hardly managed to buy and construct their houses when all such schemes were common in Karachi and all concern department were facilitating the encroachment mafia.

He said that police providing the security to the KDA team also among the beneficiaries took 25,000 to 50,000 rupees before the construction of any single house. He pointed out that KDA have also provided the plots documents complete file but now they called the documents fake.

He said that at that time KDA verified the plots documents when anybody approaches to verify the documents. He said that residents used to pay 0.5 million rupees to 1.5 million for a plot and also invest the same amount for the construction of the house.

The protesters demanded to demolish the houses of all concern department officials patronized such societies and also hanged them before demolishing our houses. Sindh IGP Dr Syed Kaleem Imam took the notice of the riots and firing in Mehran Town Korangi while asked DIG East to submit a comprehensive inquiry report of the incident.

The IGP said also directed SSP East to take lawful residents of area into confidence and also provide the security to the residents of the area.