Alleged occupation of property by Army: Defence Secretary asked to submit report by January 23

The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday sought a report from Defence Secretary by January 23 about the alleged occupation of the property of a Swat native by the security forces. A four-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was hearing a petition filed by Abdul Ghaffar.
The petitioner sought permission to enter his property that has been allegedly occupied by Pakistan army for last three years. During the course of hearing, District Officer Revenue submitted a report on the case stating that the security forces had never occupied the land. According to him, the petitioner and his son were terrorists.
Sanaullah Zahid, the counsel for petitioner, insisted that his client was a patriotic Pakistani. He claimed that on December 2011 some of his property had been even leased through auction.
The bench asked the revenue officer to identify those who had told him that the petitioner was a terrorist. The revenue officer replied that the commander of 19th Division had told him that the petitioner was a terrorist. The SC ordered the Secretary Defence to submit evidence whether the petitioner was really a terrorist.
Petitioner Abdul Ghaffar Khan has requested the court for retrieving his ancestral cultivable agriculture lands and orchards he had left behind as an Internally Displaced Person (IDP) when the operation "Rah-e-Rasst" was launched against militants and terrorists in the picturesque Swat valley. He belongs to the local brotherhood of "Khan Koori" and owned 3000 trees of peach, apricot and plum. He claimed that neither he nor his family members had been permitted to enter their native house, look after their property, conduct their business, carry out cultivation activities or maintain fruit trees.
To prove his credentials as a patriot and peace-loving citizen, the petitioner contended that he had served as in charge of a check-post called Lunda-ki in Swat for 18 years. Later he joined the local chapter of the Jamaat-e-Islami as its ameer and also became president of Kissan Board District Swat. He was also elected twice as member Union Council and later as chairman Union Council Moosa Khel.
His younger son, Fawad Ali, a doctor by profession, is running a hospital owned by an NGO namely "Islamic Relief International" at Bagh, AJK, as a charity, the petition said adding the younger brother of the petitioner is also doctor by profession who graduated from King Edward Medical College (Now University), Lahore.
His entire family, including women, have rendered relief services to the victims of 2008 earthquake. The local population was displaced from their homes and business places when operation Rah-e-Raast commenced in Swat, the petition contended, adding that Khan Koori also had to leave and become an IDP after being duly registered with the Chief Commissioner Afghan Refugees Ministry of State and Frontier Region Peshawar which issued them registration cards.
Though most of the IDPs have returned to their homes/businesses, unfortunately the Khan Koori ethnic community is still being denied entry to their ancestral place, according to the petition. The apparent reason could that his son, Muhammad Saleem's brother-in-law (wife's brother). Commander Younas was allegedly involved in some anti-state activities and wanted by the forces conducting the operation. Commander Younas has already been assassinated the petition said but explained that the petitioner, his son and even daughter in law had no contact, liaison or communication with commander Younas when he was alive. The hearing was adjourned till January 23.