The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Friday declined to grant stay order against the ongoing anti-encroachment drive along Mehmoodabad nullah. “Didn’t you see what mess the city found itself in during rainfall,” the court asked the petitioners. “Haven’t you perused the Supreme Court’s verdict [on encroachments along storm water drains]?” The petitioners, residents of Mehmoodabad, stated before the court that the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation’s anti-encroachment wing was razing leased houses and requested the court to halt the operation until this petition is decided. The court observed that the city is in abysmal state due to encroachments along storm water drains. “If you want a stay order, go to the Supreme Court,” the SHC bench told the petitioners. The petitioners complained that the relevant authorities were misinterpreting the SC order for removal of encroachments as houses leased by the KMC were being pulled down.
