HYDERABAD: A district administration official on Wednesday sealed premises of a plot along fortification wall of Pucca Qila, an archaeological site, where the owner was continuing construction in violation a court order passed on May 20.

City taluka’s assistant commissioner, Babar Saleh Rahpoto, along with officials of Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) sealed the premises in response to a letter dated June 2 sent to him by an assistant director Sindh culture department, Ms Sindhu Chandio, seeking stoppage of construction in view of the court order.

Mr Rahpoto confirmed to Dawn on phone having sealed the premises where the owner-cum-builder of basement plus ground plus two storied commercial building, Shaikh Mohammad Imran, through his attorney Shaikh Qasim, had been continuing construction for last few months.

“The builder told us that he will resume the construction after removing this sealing notice to which I replied that he will face legal action for this,” he said.

He said that he told the builder that he could move the court for legal remedy and the administration would also face it to which the builder warned a contempt of court plea would be filed against him (AC).

He said that SBCA officials had accompanied him during the Wednes­day’s visit.

The official referred in his sealing order to the June 2 letter sent to him by the culture department official, which was pasted on the doors of the under-construction building being raised within 200 feet of the prohibited area from the fortification wall of the Fort. The basement and ground floor have already been built.

Ms Sindhu had approached the administration, police and SBCA on June 2 to get the construction work stopped and the premises sealed on ground that the matter was in court which had set aside the builder’s decree in his favour.

She argued that the civil court concerned, which had issued a decree in the builder’s favour on Feb 4, 2025, set it aside on May 20 and allowed the culture department’s application to become defendant in the suit yet the builder did not stop the construction.

She said that she was even threatened by the builder in her own office, located inside Pucca Qila, in the presence of her staff.

Senior Civil Judge-III had examined papers and went through facts presented before him by the culture department and deputy district attorney before passing the May 20 order to set aside his decree he had earlier passed in favour of the builder.

Through this order, the court not only allowed the culture department official’s application to become party in the case but also ordered the plaintiff builder, Shaikh Mohammad Imran, to make deputy commissioner Hyderabad, AC City, mukhtiarkar Revenue and Director Settlement Survey as defendants and file amended title accordingly.

The court had also noted that the plaintiff builder had concealed SBCA’s Jan 7 letter whereby the authority had suspended the no objection certificate. The deputy district attorney had produced this letter in addition to other documents in respect of the archaeological site before the judge.

Published in Dawn, June 5th, 2025