ITP headquarters operating from 'contested' land

ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority has said the Islamabad Traffic Police headquarters is still functioning from a Murree Road site near Faizabad despite the withdrawal of permission for its use and the later allotment of an alternative plot.

According to the authority, the traffic police have been using the 4.20-acre government site for several years without completing the legal and administrative requirements tied to its occupation. The matter has surfaced at a time when operations against encroachments on state land are under way in the federal capital on the directives of Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who has said no concessions will be given in encroachment cases.

CDA position on the land

The CDA said permission for use of the Murree Road land was withdrawn in 2008. In 2016, Islamabad Traffic Police was allotted another 4.20-acre plot in Sector H-11/2 for relocation of its offices. According to the authority, that allotment was made on the condition that the Murree Road premises would be vacated immediately.

Despite the allocation of the alternative land, the traffic police headquarters continues to operate from the original location, the CDA said. It further stated that if the Murree Road site is to be retained, a formal change in land use and approval from the federal cabinet division would be required. Without that approval, the use of government land by a public institution cannot be treated as legally valid, according to the authority.

Background of the site

Sources said the traffic police had initially been given the space on a temporary basis. The site also includes a green belt area. The traffic police have not been paying rent to the CDA for the land.

The CDA also stated that ICT Police sought another alternative location near Faizabad in 2020, showing that the future of the present site remained unresolved. Sources said the issue was again sent to the federal cabinet for a decision, but no clear direction has yet been issued.

Islamabad Police did not immediately issue an official response. Attempts to obtain comments from the inspector general of police were unsuccessful. The development comes even as Islamabad Police remains active in operations against land grabbers in the federal capital.