Dera Ismail Khan temple news centres on the historic Ram Leela temple in Rahim Bazaar, where demolition work was halted on Wednesday after intervention by Sohail Ahmed Aazmi, president of the Dera Civil Society. Aazmi said he was told in the morning that people were trying to pull the building down to make way for a commercial building, so he went to the site with other citizens and stopped the workers.
Why the building matters
The temple is among around 400 properties in Dera Ismail Khan that are reportedly included in the cultural heritage list of the Department of Archaeology and Museums, Pakistan. Such a list records buildings considered historically significant so that they can be protected from unplanned change. The building is believed to be around 200 years old and stands in the heart of Rahim Bazaar. Aazmi said it once housed badminton and table-tennis courts, which were discontinued because the premises had deteriorated.
The sale claim and the sealing
Aazmi claimed that the building was sold by the Evacuee Trust Property Board, the body that manages evacuee property, for Rs25 million (about Rs2.5 crore) during the tenure of former chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur. He said a man at the site told the group that he had been awarded a contract to demolish it. Aazmi also recalled that several years ago an attempt to build a commercial plaza on the site was stopped after residents, including traders, objected.
Aazmi said the civil society and traders informed the district administration, and Dera Assistant Commissioner Dr Hamid Siddiq came to the site and sealed the building. The administration's position on the ownership and the demolition was not immediately available, so Aazmi's claims about the sale and the contract have not been confirmed by officials.
What happens next
Aazmi said consultations with the relevant authorities were under way to prevent further damage and decide how the structure can be protected. He called on the authorities to determine the building's legal status and to ensure that no unauthorised alterations or demolition take place. For readers following Dera Ismail Khan temple news, the key next step is that legal finding, and no decision on it had been announced in the reports available at the time of writing.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Dera Ismail Khan ke Rahim Bazaar mein Ram Leela mandir ki mismaari Budh ke din rok di gayi, jab civil society ke sadar Sohail Ahmed Aazmi ne dakhal diya. Azmi ka dawa hai ke yeh imarat Rs25 million mein bechi gayi thi, aur administration ne ise seal kar diya hai. Iska matlab yeh hai ke jab tak imarat ki qanooni haisiyat tay nahin hoti, is mein tabdeeli ya girana mushkil rahega. Aam shehri ke liye yeh purane ilaqay ki tareekh aur muqami faislon ka sawal hai.
