By: Musawir Qureshi
Anyone visiting Peshawar Ring Road today is reminded of some areas of Palestine or Afghanistan devastated by war. It feels as if the area has been bombed and everything has been destroyed as a result of war. Broken shops, demolished buildings, and shattered dreams can be seen everywhere.
People had invested years of hard work in these buildings. They had travelled abroad in search of employment, worked hard, saved money, and eventually constructed these buildings and markets. However, in the name of removing encroachments, the Peshawar Development Authority (PDA) demolished these buildings and markets within two days, leaving hundreds of people homeless and unemployed. Sadly, the affected people claim that they were not served any notices before the operation began. This action has caused local people losses amounting not merely to crores but to billions of rupees.
The question is: how much more beautiful will the city become as a result of this operation, launched in the name of urban beautification, and how much benefit will ordinary people receive from it? Will people’s lives continue to be ruined in the name of enforcing the law, or will the government also adopt a path of justice?
The reality is that the government should have first held discussions with the affected people, served them notices, and determined the legal status of their properties. According to local residents, some of these properties were inherited from their parents and ancestors, while others had spent crores of rupees constructing their shops and markets. They claim that they possess proper property documents and have the legal right to conduct business there.
Now the question is: who will compensate the people who have suffered such enormous losses?
In response to the claims of local residents, government officials maintain that discussions about the operation against encroachments had been taking place for the past two to three years and that negotiations had also been held with the people. However, according to the government, they did not accept its demands. The government also maintains that most of the land is state-owned and that people have constructed markets on it.
But an important question arises here: if the government had indeed warned people in advance, who allowed them to construct buildings and markets along Ring Road, and why? Which government officials were involved in this matter?
It is true that the government has the right to enforce the law, but violating people’s rights in the name of the law is neither a path to justice nor a requirement of humanity or good governance.
If markets were indeed constructed by occupying state-owned land and people had been conducting business there for years, is demolishing the markets alone a permanent solution to this problem?
The real question is: how were these markets constructed in the first place? Who approved the building plans? If the land belonged to the government, why did the relevant authorities keep their eyes closed for so many years? If anyone illegally allotted land, accepted money, or permitted illegal construction, who will punish them? Who will hold them accountable?
Are shopkeepers or market owners the only culprits in this illegal activity? Who will investigate the financial irregularities involved in this entire matter, identify those who benefited from it, and hold those who facilitated it accountable? If those responsible for supervision are allowed to escape accountability, how will accountability ever be ensured?
From the outset, the government should have made the land records available, examined the ownership documents, and then initiated the operation. Now that the damage has already been done, it is the government’s responsibility to take action against illegal constructions in accordance with the law and ensure that the same legal measures are applied to all responsible individuals.
If someone’s ownership is proven to be legal, their rights must be protected. If someone has occupied state-owned land, action must be taken against them in accordance with the law. However, in either case, people’s years of investment and hard work must not be ignored. Alternative arrangements should also be made for those affected.
Now that the province is under Governor’s Rule, with an elected government replaced by this arrangement and an emergency situation in place, while operations against encroachments are also underway, the public has every right to ask what the government’s policy and standards are.
It is also said that former elected representatives face allegations of corruption. If this is the case, these allegations should first be investigated transparently. The nation’s looted money should be recovered, and those responsible should be punished in accordance with the law. But the question is: why does this not happen? Is it because their turn has come today, and someone else’s turn will come tomorrow? Is this why all relevant individuals are not held accountable for the waste of public money, delays in development projects, and violations of public rights?
If the government genuinely wants reforms, accountability must not be limited to the weak. Those in power must also be asked where public money was spent, which development projects were left incomplete, and who was responsible for wasting public resources.
These projects must also be completed because various parts of Peshawar currently present a scene of excavations, broken roads, and potholes.
Similarly, if we look at the past, operations against encroachments were also carried out in Peshawar Saddar. Their purpose was to organise the markets and make movement easier for the public. However, today, in different areas of Saddar, spaces in front of roads and markets have been converted into parking areas and leased out under contracts.
The question is: who awarded these contracts? Who benefits from them, and who suffers the losses? When a vehicle enters or exits a parking area, traffic problems arise, and roads become blocked.
Why is a plan not developed in the name of organising the city that genuinely solves people’s problems? It is also worth asking under which law arrangements have been made for vehicle parking on the road, or even over the road itself.
What kind of law or good initiative is it to demolish shops and create difficulties for people?
Another important question arises here: what is the standard for measuring the success of an operation against encroachments?
The government should clearly explain how much beautifying the city will be achieved by clearing and widening Ring Road, to what extent traffic problems will be reduced, and how many opportunities will be created for future development. These objectives are also important for the public, but development benefits people only when their rights, businesses, and sources of livelihood are also protected.
If a labourer or shopkeeper has built a shop through years of hard work, his family depends on that business for its livelihood, and the government demolishes his shop, who will take responsibility for his household expenses, his children’s education, and the repayment of his debts?
For the government, it may be just a building, but for a poor person, it represents the outcome of a lifetime of hard work.
However, if a structure has been illegally built on state-owned land, investing money in it alone does not establish legal ownership. Nevertheless, the government should transparently investigate every ownership claim, distinguish between legal ownership and illegal occupation, and treat people in accordance with the law. Ignoring the difficulties of helpless people is also unjust.
In a video, a poor shopkeeper was heard saying that he had spent his entire life working abroad and had built the shop with the money he earned, but the government demolished it within minutes. This is truly a distressing situation.
If the government speaks of public safety and the lawful use of state-owned land, it should also seriously examine hotels and other structures established along riverbanks in Swat and Kalam.
People are asking: if an operation against encroachments along Ring Road is so necessary, when will steps be taken to prevent unsafe constructions along dangerous riverbanks? Why does the government announce relief measures after damage has occurred, instead of establishing an effective and consistent system to prevent such damage beforehand in all areas?
Operations against encroachments are underway in different parts of the province, but the real question is: what will happen after these operations? Will illegal constructions not reappear in these places? Will state-owned land not be occupied again through influence and recommendations? Will there be a permanent monitoring system to maintain proper urban management?
The experience of previous operations in Peshawar Saddar should serve as a lesson for future actions. The day of an operation is not the only thing that matters. Managing the city afterwards, regulating traffic, enforcing parking rules, and preventing illegal occupations from being re-established are equally important.
The government should present a clear plan for every area, listen to public complaints, determine the legal status of properties, and take measures to prevent state-owned land from being occupied again after the operation is completed. Otherwise, today’s operations may become the reason for the same problems to emerge again tomorrow.
The government should also keep in mind that the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are already facing inflation, unemployment, and difficult economic conditions. At the same time, the closure of businesses and the fear of financial losses resulting from government actions are creating further concerns.
Previous governments have also faced severe criticism for failing to resolve public problems. Now, the federal and provincial governments must not limit themselves to statements and operations; they must take practical steps to improve people’s lives.
If the government is spending money to beautify the city, it should also take steps to restore the businesses of affected people, reduce the difficulties of workers who have become unemployed, and resolve the legal complaints of affected families. If someone’s ownership is proven to be legal, their rights must be protected. If someone is legally entitled to compensation, their claim should be investigated transparently.
Providing relief to the public does not mean making announcements for a few days. It means reducing the difficulties people face in earning a livelihood, educating their children, obtaining medical treatment, and managing their daily lives.
The operation on Peshawar Ring Road is not merely a matter of shops and buildings. It is also a matter of the equal enforcement of the law, government planning, protection of state-owned land, and the economic rights of the public.
The government should:
– Transparently examine the documents and legal status of all properties affected along Ring Road.
– Hold accountable not only those who illegally occupy state-owned land but also those who facilitate such occupations and grant illegal permissions.
– Listen to public complaints and ensure the protection of the rights of people who have legal ownership.
– Develop an organised plan to improve traffic, parking, and business conditions in areas such as Saddar after operations.
– Take effective measures to prevent dangerous constructions in Swat, Kalam, and other flood-prone areas before disasters occur.
– Take practical steps to reduce the effects of inflation, unemployment, and damage to businesses.
If the protection of state-owned land is being discussed, those who occupy it and those who help them do so must also be held accountable. If the rights of the public are being discussed, the rights of a poor shopkeeper must be given the same importance as those of a minister, official, or politician.
A city cannot be made beautiful by destroying the lives of its people. True beauty is achieved through justice, better planning, and the equal enforcement of the law. Governments come and go, but people’s hard work, their families, and their livelihood problems remain.
The public is not asking the government for favours; it is demanding its rights, justice, and opportunities for a better life. The time has come for the government to demonstrate, alongside its operations, a practical commitment to accountability, transparency, and genuine relief for the public.
