Fourth day
\nShop owners seen protesting outside Empress Market against the demolishing of shops
\nINP
\nKARACHI
\nAn anti-encroachment drive in the metropolis\u2019 Saddar area entered its fourth day today (Thursday).
\nThe operation was conducted around Tibet Centre, Akbar Road and Zaibunnisa Street on the Supreme Court\u2019s orders to remove encroachments from Saddar and adjoining areas.
\nThe apex court, on October 27, had ordered removal of illegal encroachments in the city within the next 15 days.
\nHowever, as the operation entered the fourth day, shop owners were seen protesting outside Empress Market against the demolishing of their shops.
\nAccording to the shop owners, they have been paying the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and other departments for the past 50 years and despite the payment, their shops were demolished.
\nThe shop owners have demanded that they be provided an alternative place or they will continue to protest.
\nSpeaking to media, Mayor Karachi Waseem Akhtar said, \u201cWe want to return the city and Empress Market to its original state.\u201d
\n\u201cWe do not want to repeat the mistakes of the past. Contracts of all those areas that KMC had given under rent have been terminated.\u201d
\nHe continued, \u201cWe will not take away anyone\u2019s livelihood, we just want to remove the encroachments. If anyone takes the law into their hands we will take action against them.\u201d
\nOn October 27, the Supreme Court had ordered the removal of illegal encroachments in the metropolis.
\nTerming the shop owners\u2019 protest as illegal, Akhtar said, \u201cAll institutions should comply with SC\u2019s orders and we will not let anything unlawful happen with anyone.\u201d
\n\u201cThe business community is happy with the removal of encroachments,\u201d he said, adding, \u201cThose unemployed as result of the operation will be given an alternative space in another market.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Fourth day Shop owners seen protesting outside Empress Market against the demolishing of shops INP KARACHI An anti-encroachment drive in the metropolis\u2019 Saddar area entered its fourth day today (Thursday). The operation was conducted around Tibet Centre, Akbar Road and Zaibunnisa Street on the Supreme Court\u2019s orders to remove encroachments from Saddar and adjoining areas. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34457,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-34444","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-national","8":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n