KARACHI: An-anti encroachment drive in Karachi’s Manzoor colony has been postponed after the residents staged a protest demonstration today (Thursday) to voice their reservations against the operation.
Fearing homelessness, they took to the streets a day after authorities launched an anti-encroachment drive. The drive was launched on the pretext that illegal constructions hampered drainage and caused flooding during rain.
The residents, holding placards and banners against government, gathered near the Manzoor Colony main road and blocked the flow of traffic for hours. Later, were forced by the police to disperse.
The protesters claimed that they were living in the surroundings of the Gujjar Nullah for many years and no government official had stopped them when they were constructing their homes.
They also accused the government officials of taking bribes from them when they were building their homes and said that now the same government officials were claiming that those houses were illegal and should be demolished.
A week after record-breaking torrential rains wreaked havoc on Karachi, the provincial government started an operation against commercial encroachments around the city’s stormwater drains.
