Police accused of negligence in retaking govt land

KHOST CITY (Pajhwok): Some government officials in southeastern Khost province have accused police of refusing to help retake the land for the industrial park from grabbers.

A reliable government source, who wished to go unnamed, told Pajhwok Afghan News said 200 acres of land had been allotted for the park Mandozai Ismailkhel district a few years back.

A $17 million budget was set aside for constructing the park’s boundary wall and other facilities. However, he said, as the land had been usurped by area people, the park’s fund lapsed every year.

A plan was devised a few months back for reclaiming the land and a decision taken for implementing it. But the provincial police headquarters had been ignoring the plan’s execution, he added.

“Because the provincial police commander hails from Mandozai district. Due to his sympathy with his tribe, he isn’t willing to reclaim the land for the industrial park.”

The official blamed the police commander for negligence in removing hurdles to implementation of projects for the happiness of his tribe.

“Recently, decisions about getting back the land from usurpers have been taken at many military meetings, but the police headquarters has evinced no interest in this regard.”

According to him, of the 200 acres of land, 150 acres are in government control, but the provincial police performance is not satisfactory in providing security for the execution of the project.

Meanwhile, Khost Governor Hokam Khan Habibi told Pajhwok the industrial park project had not been implemented due to social issues and property disputes in the area.

He said security organs had been directed to reclaim the park’s land from its occupants. However, he said nothing about the lack of cooperation from police.

“If the land allocated for the industrial park is wrested back, it will provide an opportunity to entrepreneurs to establish factories. But unfortunately, the project has been delayed.”

Habibi did not identify the grabbers. However, he obliquely referred to problems being created by the tribespeople from Mandozai and Ismailkhel district.

If power, security and land were guaranteed for the project, all factories functioning in homes and markets in Khost City, the provincial capital, would be relocated to one place, he continued.

On the other hand, provincial council member Qadeem Afghan said the land for the industrial park had not been usurped as it was Mandozai people’s property.

He said nothing about police’s negligence, but explained the Mandozai people had proved their ownership of the land in all three courts.

“A man claimed having ownership of 75 acres of the land, but the Mandozai people won the case in the three courts and the tribe has documents proving its ownership.”

A tribal elder from the district, Haji Gul Nawaz Khan, denied creating hurdles to development projects. In fact, he insisted, they provided all-out support for such initiatives.

However, he slammed the government for not reclaiming the industrial park’s land, on which construction had also taken place. The government instead wanted to establish the park on private lands, he charged.

“Of the 200 acres, 125 acres of land is in government possession and houses have been built on the rest . The government should destroy the homes and retake its land.”

He said he had legal ownership documents of his land and he never claimed the government-owned land.

However, provincial police chief, Brig. Gen. Faizullah Ghairat said police was committed to wresting back the grabbed land.

He about the industrial park said: “The project was being implemented in another area instead of its original specified land; therefore, some people opposed it but the problem has been solved now.”

He acknowledged the usurpation of some parts of the industrial park land by people, saying the issue was put forward to people, who expressed readiness to leave and hand over the land.

sns/mud

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