Consulate officials take possession of Karachi house

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD, APRIL 16. The Karachi police is believed to have evicted the illegal occupant of the residence of the Indian Consul General in Karachi, which has been lying vacant since the decision of the Pakistan Government to close down the Consulate in January 1995.

According to a senior official in the Indian High Commission acting on the complaint lodged by the Commission, the Karachi police broke open the lock put on the residence by the encroacher and helped the Indian authorities put its lock at the premises.

Three days ago the Indian High Commission here had lodged a protest with the Pakistani Foreign Office on the subject and sought help of the Pakistani Government in getting the residence vacated.

It appears that the residence of the Consulate General in the heart of Karachi was `rented out' by a Pakistani citizen after a false claim that he has obtained the authorisation of the Indian Government for the purpose.

The Indian Government owns six properties in the heart of Karachi. These included the building, which served as the office of the Consul General before it was shut down in January 1995, residence for the Consul General and quarters for the other staff.

In its protest note to the Pakistan Foreign Office, the Indian High Commission had referred to the provisions of the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and sought to remind the Government that the safety and security of all properties of the Indian Government in Karachi are squarely the responsibility of the Pakistan Government.

``The High Commission requests the esteemed Ministry to kindly have the matter urgently looked into to secure immediate evacuation of the present encroachment under intimation to the High Commission and to ensure that no encroachment takes place in the future at any of the Government of India properties in Karachi,'' the Indian High Commission note said.

Pak. urged to begin criminal proceedings

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Front Page
Previous : Jayalalitha files nomination in Krishnagiri
Next     : U.S. official discusses Afghanistan with Pak.