A joint action committee comprising Quaid-e-Azam University (QAU) Alumni Association, Academic Staff Association and university employees released a fact sheet on the issue of Quaid-e-Azam University land controversy, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
According to the document issued on Sunday, the area of 1709 acres, four kanals and 12 marlas was acquired by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) in 1967-72 for the Quaid-e-Azam University. But despite full payment, the vacant possession and demarcation of the land was not given to the university by the CDA, so the university has inherited several illegal occupants, including nine villages, which cover about 298 acres within the university campus.
Some illegal encroachments from outside have also taken hold during this period.
According to the report of the Survey of Pakistan 2017, the land of the university is 152 acres short. But there is a total shortfall of 450 acres in the allotted land of the university.
The university administration has repeatedly requested the CDA and the local administration to demarcate the land, remove the vacant occupation of the university land, and hand it over to the university evacuating all illegal occupants/encroachers.
But CDA and district administration took no effective action on applications.
In the decision of Writ Petition No. 109/2017, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had directed the CDA to demarcate the entire land of Quaid-e-Azam University within one month on 21/10/2020, but despite the clear orders of the court, no action was taken.
On the special instructions of the Prime Minister of Pakistan, the present government launched an operation against encroachments on January 5, 2019, via ICT district administration, ICT Police and CDA to reclaim the encroached land of QAU.
JAC and university officials appreciated the operation and expressed hope that the present government would solve this long-standing problem of the university.
It is relevant to note that some structures/boundary walls of few houses illegally constructed on the land of the university was demolished while the crops were grown by the locals on about 100 plus acres of land of the university were plowed during the anti-encroachment operation.
But later the operation was halted leaving the work for the ministerial committee to settle the "slums" currently occupying the university land. Now after much time, no further action has been taken to reclaim the university land.
The JAC urged the concerned authorities to take notice of the matter and directed the concerned constituencies to reclaim the occupied/encroached land (298 acres) and direct the CDA to relocate the land allotted to the university to fulfill still encroached land of 152 acres.