Land mafias LEAs set to kick off series of surgical operations

Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) are all set to kick off series of grand surgical operations against land mafias, operating in the metropolis, Business Recorder has learnt. According to sources, LEAs are ready to act and awaiting a formal approval from the interior ministry.
They said Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani at a meeting had shown his keenness to weed out land mafias from Karachi. For this purpose, he had directed the interior minister to collect information and initiate indiscriminate surgical operations against land grabbers.
Following the directives, the interior ministry had approached the Sindh Board of Revenue (SBR) and Anti Encroachment Cell (AEC), asking them to provide information regarding encroached private and public properties. The sources said the SBR and AEC had prepared a list of the groups involved in this business.
They said the list, which was communicated to the interior ministry, has suggested to the authorities concerned to conduct operations at some 32 areas of the city and added that the ground work in this regard has been completed and LEAs are about to move on. They said the LEAs in keeping with intelligence reports are planning to initiate these operations initially from Bin Qasim Town, Gadap Town, Surjani Town, Memon Goth, Baldia, Keamari, Hawksbay, Gulshan Iqbal, Gulistan Jauhar, Gulshan Maymar, Manghopir, Shah Latif Town, etc.
The sources said the LEAs would also tighten the noose around the well-known builders, who were hand in glove with the land mafias in this illicit business. Replying to a question, they regretted that although the AEC, constituted in 2010 to cope land mafias with an iron hand, had established 37 cases and successfully arrested 61 culprits out of 98 in last year and majority of them released.