Capital Development Authority's (CDA) anti-encroachment staff and machinery reached Noori Bagh Mohallah in Noorpur Shahan, Islamabad, on Tuesday to demolish structures in the area. As bulldozers began destroying on the first house, between 400 to 500 residents, including women and children, emerged from their homes.

 

Villagers pelted stones at the officials, forcing them to withdraw. The operation was suspended on Tuesday and police were called to the scene to manage the situation.

 

A police contingent equipped with riot control units arrived and the anti-encroachment operation resumed. Residents resisted the operation, leading to a confrontation between villagers and police.

 

Police fired teargas shells and used batons when residents refused to disperse. During the clash, police and villagers engaged in physical fighting. Residents threw stones at police, and two CDA vehicles were set on fire during the confrontation.

 

Eight police officers and a number of residents sustained injuries. Police later used heavy teargas shelling to push back the villagers. Some protesters, mostly women and children, retreated into their homes. According to police and CDA, the operation continued until around 9 pm.

 

Residents stated that police also fired pellets at protesters, in addition to the teargas and baton charges. They indicated that around 50 villagers were injured during the police action. Noori Bagh Mohallah was completely demolished during the operation.

 

Over the past six months, more than 13,000 houses have been demolished in Noorpur Shahan. Approximately 15,000 houses remain in the area. Shops near the Bari Imam Shrine were also demolished. Police conducted search operations in Kamalpur and Bona Mohallah, detaining over 50 residents. In the evening, police arrested additional villagers.

 

About 1,000 police personnel were stationed across different locations, including near the shrine. Police raids continued through the evening as residents went into hiding.

 

Gunshots were heard during the operation. Police stated that some villagers were carrying weapons, while residents blamed the police for the firing.

 

Lawyer Mahnoor, through a social media post, highlighted concerns over the operation. She noted that residents of Bari Imam were being shot at, shelled, and teargas was being used against them. She pointed out that such police action was familiar to residents of Islamabad, but those from the lowest income backgrounds bore the brunt. She raised questions about the 50,000 people living in the area whose homes had been destroyed, businesses ruined, and personal belongings left on the road.

 

On social media, residents and observers expressed various concerns. Some noted that the settlements were illegal and those living there knew this. Others observed that when people accept brutality and stop protesting against government action, such operations occur.

 

One comment highlighted that “electricity had been cut off in the area, leaving people helpless”. Another called for the city to stand with Bari Imam residents.

 

Some raised questions about the land ownership system, noting that the state should own the land rather than private individuals. They referenced a case that had been ongoing for over 14 years and mentioned that compensation had been provided in other cases.

 

Another perspective noted that "informal housing settlements affect the working class now, but the middle class should consider their own housing status in the city". 

 

They pointed out that land prices prevent people from building houses, with no housing schemes available where people can afford ownership.

 

Some raised questions about rehabilitation policies for displaced people, noting that two other villages with the same status had been compensated earlier, questioning why Bari Imam and Saidpur were treated differently.

 

One resident noted that the people of Noorpur Shahan had lived in the area for nearly 500 years, with the village enduring from the Mughal era through the British period to present-day Pakistan. They described the current operation as displacement rather than development.

 

Another comment noted that the people being affected were workers who make Islamabad function, and that displacement and humiliation were their reward for labor.