February 28, 2026
By Bilal Baseer
ISLAMABAD
Musarrat Fatima, a resident of Muslim Colony is dependent on a wheelchair because of her medical condition. Late at night during a demoliton operation in Muslim Colon and adjoining settlements, officials of the Capital Development Authority (CDA), accompanied by police, removed her from her home. For the past three days she has been separated from her family along with 25,000 other people like her who have been displaced in the drive. She says no alternative housing was provided despite court directives restraining such action without prior arrangements.
By the time dawn broke, she said, the house she had built over years of savings was gone.
“My house was the result of years of hard work. A roof over one’s head is a basic right, but it has been taken from us in the name of development,” she says, her wheelchair parked at the edge of a modest stage in G-11 Markaz. “If this were to happen to the children or families of officials, politicians or judges, what would they do?”
This public hearing, styled as an awami adalat, was organised by the Awami Workers Party during Ramzan. Men, women and children from several katchi abadis sat in close rows, some still uncertain where they would sleep in the coming weeks.
Participants said demolition operations had been under way for months across informal settlements in Islamabad. They alleged that the pace had accelerated in recent weeks and had continued through Ramazan, leaving thousands to arrange shelter overnight.
Residents referred to earlier orders of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) restraining the civic body from demolishing houses without justification and without first providing alternative accommodation. In 2015, the Supreme Court of Pakistan directed that no homes should be razed unless substitute arrangements were made for affected families.
For many gathered at the hearing, these legal references offered a fragile sense of hope. Residents said they believed the spirit of those rulings had not been observed in the ongoing operations.
The CDA recently introduced an Urban Regeneration and Resettlement Policy. Critics at the hearing argued that the policy applies only to settlements established before 1994, leaving thousands of families outside its scope.
Women’s rights activist Farzana Bari termed the evictions unjust and said thousands had been displaced. “Thousands have been displaced and many of them are women, children and persons with disabilities. Human rights organisations are mobilising to make the state realise its responsibility towards these people,” she said.
Leaders of the Awami Workers Party framed the demolitions as a question of priorities in a growing city. Party leader Alia Amir Ali said the hearing aimed to send a message to policymakers. “Development cannot mean driving the majority of this city out of their homes by force. There must be consultation and there must be dignified alternatives,” she said.
The hearing concluded with an iftar for participants, where affected families expressed solidarity. Residents reiterated their demand that development projects should not deprive them of shelter and called for dignified alternative housing before any further operations are carried out.