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KARACHI: Police and paramilitary Rangers on Friday fire tear gas and baton-charged on citizens protesting outside Karachi’s Nasla Tower, a 15-storey residential building, against the building’s demolition on Supreme Court’s orders.
According to details, the protest and rioting have hampered traffic at the Shahrah-i-Faisal and Shahrah-i-Quaideen, where evening rush hours have begun. The protest was being organised by the Association of Builders and Developers of Pakistan (Abad).
The protestors attempted to block Shahrah-i-Faisal near Nursery roundabout. According to SSP South Zubai Nazir, officials were trying to restore peace and said that tear gas shells were being used in an effort to disperse the protesters.
Meanwhile, several media outlets have reported that deputy chairman ABAD and several other people got injured in the shelling.
Abad had initially announced a protest in front of Nasla Tower, and Chairman Mohsin Sheikhani had said that the association would be halting all projects in Karachi.
He had claimed that despite getting approvals from government agencies, they stood “null and void”. He also requested the government to inform the association who the “final authority” is for seeking approvals.
Nasla Tower was vacated by the residents last month after the Supreme Court ordered it to be demolished using controlled blast. However, experts later revealed that Pakistan lacked the technology to take down buildings using controlled implosions.
Eventually, Karachi Commissioner hired a local contractor and started the demolition process using manual labourers and machines. A hollowed-out structure stands out among other buildings alongside the Sharae Faisal since Thursday.
On June 16, a three-judge SC bench, presided by Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed, had initially ordered the demolition of the 15-storey building for encroaching on the land meant for a service road.
Issuing a detailed order for the same on June 19, the court had also directed the builders of Nasla Tower to refund the amount to the registered buyers of residential and commercial units within three months.
