CHARSADDA: More than a dozen residents of Charsadda have alleged that their houses in Mouza Maira Rajar were being demolished due to the alleged personal intervention of a senior government official.
The affected residents alleged that they had legally purchased the land and possessed complete records of its mutations and registered deeds. However, they claimed that cases filed against them were decided with unusual haste.
Addressing a press conference along with dozens of affected residents, Gohar Hayat and other speakers said they had purchased more than eight jeribs of land from a woman in Mouza Maira Rajar in 2012.
They said that after full payment was made, the land was transferred and registered in their names, following which a housing scheme was established on the property.The residents said the land was subsequently divided into five- and 10-marla plots and sold to different people. Several purchasers constructed houses on their plots, while the mutations of the plots were also transferred to the names of the respective buyers.
They alleged that nearly 14 years later, some members of the original owner’s family filed cases against them. They alleged that these people were close relatives of the senior Board of Revenue member.
The residents alleged that decisions were issued against them by different revenue courts within a week of the cases being filed, and that they were not given a proper opportunity to present their cases or be heard in accordance with the principles of natural justice.
Gohar Hayat and the other affected residents said they had approached various forums seeking justice, but their complaints had not been addressed impartially by the relevant authorities.
They described the speed with which the revenue cases were decided as highly unusual and demanded a transparent investigation into the matter.The residents appealed to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief secretary to order an inquiry into the matter.
They demanded that if any government official was found to have misused their authority or attempted to influence judicial or revenue proceedings, legal action should be taken against them.The affected residents warned that if one-sided action against them continued and attempts were made to demolish their houses, they would be compelled to set up a protest camp outside the office of the Charsadda deputy commissioner.
