HATTIAN BALA (Kashmir English): A family from Hattian Bala, Azad Kashmir has sought government intervention in retrieving their property from the land mafia.
“Our land should be retrieved, otherwise we will be forced to commit suicide,” said Syed Zulfiqar Shah, a poor labourer from Kotla Chanari, along with his two sisters, Syeda Mehreen Kazmi and Syeda Noreen Kazmi. They arrived at the District Press Club Hattian Bala to seek justice.
The affected person, while speaking to journalists, said that he barely supports his family by selling tea in Abbottabad, but an influential person, Sabir Gilani, son of Noor Alam Gilani, has not only illegally occupied his land but is also extending serious threats.
According to Zulfiqar Shah, Sabir Gilani had leased the land from him against Rs 10,000 per month as rent. “After paying rent for the initial two months, Sabir Gilani stopped paying rent and, rather, occupied the land.
He alleged that last year, in connivance with the district administration, Revenue Department officials, and a Patwari, Shafiq, a fake agreement of sale was prepared in the names of Safdar Hussain Shah, Wazahat Hussain Shah, and Ilyas Hussain Shah, and their two kanal seven marla land was illegally transferred to Sabir Gilani.
Zulfiqar Shah stated that he is an illiterate and quite unaware of legal complexities. He mentioned that Girdawar Bashir Abbasi of the Revenue Department took Rs15,000 to prepare fake documents. Despite a commission being appointed by the court, the commission did not visit the site but went to a village and prepared a fictitious report based on some other land, which was then submitted to the court.
Zulfiqar Shah stated that Sabir Gilani openly threatens him. His sisters also tearfully stated that they don’t even had money for transportation to Hattian.
They appealed to the Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir, the Chief Secretary, the Inspector General of Police, the Deputy Commissioner Jhelum Valley, and the SP Jhelum Valley to take immediate action against this influential person, retrieve their land, and provide them with protection for their lives and property.
