PTI leader questions transparency of anti-encroachment drive

KARACHI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker Khurram Sher Zaman on Sunday cast doubt on the transparency of the ongoing anti-encroachment operation in the metropolis.

He said the operation is not being carried out in a transparent manner. Karachi Mayor Waseem Akhtar has been razing shops and houses of the poor only, he alleged.

When the Bilawal House’s walls, which have been erected on the footpath, will be pulled down, the PTI lawmaker questioned and claimed a politician owned a building built on the Nahr-e-Khayyam.

He further asked whether Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar’s directives with regard to demolition of illegal structures are for the poor only. The walls of the poor people’s houses are being demolished while the rich people’s palaces stand intact, he lamented.

Mr Zaman asked the mayor if he was afraid of taking action against them, saying he is willing to take Mr Akhtar on a tractor to demolish illegal structures. He said he would respond to a Rs50 million defamation suit soon.

The PTI stands against any injustice meted out in the port city, he said and asserted it has nothing to do with the anti-encroachment drive.