Daily Times

KARACHI: The Sindh government made much hue and cry only after the “land grabbers” demolished major part of the Government Jufel Hurst Secondary School located in Soldier Bazaar area of metropolis. However, the person being labeled as land grabber claims that the portion of the building demolished is not the part of school as being portrayed.

The school was demolished on late Saturday night but the responsible officials including the Education Minister, Jam Mehtab Hussain Dahar, Secretary Schools Education Department, Abdul Aziz Uqaili, Secretary, Director Schools Karachi, Riaz Ahmed Siddique, Additional Inspector General of Police Dr Aftab Ahmed Pathan and others instead of taking prompt action enjoyed Sunday as holiday. On Monday these officials were moved into action only after the matter was flashed in electronic and print media.

Besides, politicians of various political parties, socials workers, officials of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation and representatives of the local government gathered in an attempt to not miss the opportunity of point scoring and photo session. After the photo sessions the blame game started as the politicians, officials of the education department including education minister shifted the reasonability to the police while police held local community responsible for the incident as they did not “cooperated” with them.

Official record of the schools reveals that the building of the Government Jufel Husrt Secondary was built by Sybil D’Abreo in 1928 on more than one acre land. In 1931, Ms D’Abreo had started a school in the building. She renamed the building by using hers parents names. Hers mother name was Julia and father name was Felix therefore she took the first two letters of her mother name and last three letters of her father’s name while Hurst means home, and she named her school ‘Jufel Hurst School’.

The school was nationalized in 1973 since then three schools were running in the building premises in two shifts including primary middle and high secondary. “D’Abreo passed away in 80s and there is no owner of the building. The Sindh government has declared the building of Jufel Hurst School a protected heritage site under Snidh Cultural Heritage Act 1994”, Mohammad Shafiq, Head Master of the Schools said.

The Culture, Tourism and Antiquities Department Sindh had notified status of Jufel Hurst School as protected heritage site on 29 January 2016.

“The building was declared dangerous in 2012 and was sealed by Sindh controlled building authority but later on education had forgot its renovation” Abdur Rauf Khan, chairman of District Municipal Corporation East Karachi said adding that former Sindh Education Minister, Pir Mazhar-ul-Haq had reopened the school and around 450 students are enrolled in the school but Schools Education Department did not renovate the building.

“Negligence of the authorities made the situation worst, land grabbers bulldozed the schools with the connivance of police as there is no one to question them”, Muhammad Hussain Mehnati , former Karachi Chief of Jamat-e-Islami said demanding immediate arrest of the person responsible for the demolition of school.

“FIR has been lodged against the accused and they will be given exemplary punishment in order to discourage those who were willing to occupy government land illegally”, Provincial Minister for Education and Literacy, Jam Mehtab Hussain Dahar said standing at the debris.

He added that Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah has approved Rs 30 million for renovation of declared historic heritage and Government School Jufel Hurst will be restored into its original shape.

The Minister for expressed his resentment that the concerned Police Station did not respond quickly and the delay caused damage to the school building. He said that the Government was keenly monitoring the whole scenario and the accused who were found involved in this mess, would be taken to task at all cost.

Meanwhile, Additional Inspector general of police said that station house officer (SHO), Irshad Soomro has suspended till enquiry because SHO is responsible to protect public and private properties, lives and enforce law and orders. The SSP East, SSP East Faisal Abdullah and inquiry team also visit the school where they recorded statements of eye witnesses.

According to eye witnesses a person named Adnan, who identified himself as a officer of Federal Investigative Agency, came up along with armed guards and machinery to demolish the school building.

When contacted by Daily Times, Adnan Habibani is his written reply said that “The Jufel Hurst, Govt. Secondary School, is situated at Garden East Quarters, on plot No. 356 and 325, where the plot number 356/1, adjacent to the above school, is not the property of school”.

He said “in fact it was separated from the school, on the request of its then owner Sajjad Bashir, through bifurcation order of Assistant Commissioner Jamshed Quarters on 06.09.2012, bearing his office endorsement number No/Asst: Collector G-I/A.C/J.Qrts/E/575/2012, Karachi, and it was separated into 2 plots bearing No. GRE-356 (measuring 2895 sq yards) and 356/1 (measuring 1426 Sq. Yards)”.

“Later on 17.10.2016, the plot number 356/1 (measuring 1426 Sq. Yards ) which was not a part of school was sold to (1) Muhammad Abid (45% share), (2) Mr. Zeeshan (45% share), and Adnan Ali (10% share), through sale deed registration no. 198, of Sub-Registrar, Jamshed Town. Extracts Form of Property Register for the city of Karachi., Garden East Quarter is also attached as a proof of legal ownership of 356/1 (measuring 1426 Sq)”, he said.

“In 2016, the plot No. 356 measuring 2895 Sq. Yards and the plot No. 325, where the current school is situated was declared as national heritage, but plot 356/1 was never declared a national heritage as being portrayed in the media by the school”, he added.

It is pertinent to mention here that there are 3097 schools running in 680 buildings in Karachi region and most of the schools have no proper building.