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Anti-encroachment drive: Commercial complex owned by former Kashmir minister razed
Officials said the complex of former social welfare minister Ghulam Hassan Khan was removed for “unlawful encroachment” at the main square, Shopian
Jammu and Kashmir government’s anti-encroachment drive on state land gained pace on Friday after authorities demolished a commercial complex owned by former minister and ex-MLA from south Kashmir’s Shopian district.
Officials said the complex of former social welfare minister Ghulam Hassan Khan was removed for “unlawful encroachment” at the main square, Shopian. The demolition comes two days after an outhouse and a boundary wall of the residence of National Conference leader Ali Mohammad Sagar’s wife was razed in Srinagar.
“A commercial structure belonging to an ex-minister of social welfare was demolished as part of our anti-encroachment drive to reclaim Kahcharai (grazing land)/state land from unlawful encroachments,” an official Twitter handle of Shopian district said.
“No one is above the law. #Shopian Anti Encroachment Drive #Reclaiming Public Land (sic),” it said.
Khan, in his 70s, an Apni Party leader who was formerly associated with the PDP, had allegedly constructed a two-storey structure with four shops over encroached state land which was demolished by the authorities.
Repeated attempts to contact him failed to elicit any result.
Authorities had on Wednesday demolished an outer wall and the entrance gate of the residence of Sagar’s wife in Budgam district. Their son Salman Sagar had termed the government action a “political vendetta”.
J&K government has launched a major eviction drive to clear state land of encroachments. The exercise has caused major resentment among common people and politicians, who say that the drive will affect poor people possessing small landholdings for living or survival for decades.
J&K lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha had assured that no poor people will be targeted, but only those “influential people who used their approach to encroach state land”.
“Legal action is being taken against influential people who had illegally encroached upon the government…People are at the centre of governance. We have ensured that the interests of common citizens are protected and that they are not impacted by the campaign to remove illegal encroachments,” Sinha had reiterated on the Republic Day.
