Eviction Laws in Sindh: How Loopholes Fuel the Land Grab Mafia
The Sindh Rented Premises Act was enacted with a noble intention: to protect tenants from arbitrary eviction and to regulate landlord–tenant relationships. In a society where affordable housing is scarce and tenants are often vulnerable, such protective legislation is necessary. Yet, the law’s very structure contains loopholes that, instead of safeguarding the weak, have opened the door to organized abuse. The rise of land grabbing mafias and criminal syndicates in Karachi and other parts of Sindh is in no small part due to the Act’s failure to strike a balance between tenant rights and property rights.
One of the most glaring flaws lies in the way Rent Courts approach disputes. Under the Sindh Rented Premises Act, it is largely immaterial who the true owner of the property is. The court does not embark on a thorough inquiry into ownership when deciding tenancy or eviction matters. While this rule was designed to avoid delays in rent proceedings—ownership questions being more properly a matter for civil courts—it has become a loophole ripe for exploitation.
Consider the situation of a genuine landlord. If their property is unlawfully occupied, the occupant can produce a fabricated tenancy agreement or falsely claim tenancy rights. Since the Rent Controller will not probe into ownership in detail, the illegal occupant gains procedural protection as a “tenant,” dragging the landlord into years of litigation. In practice, the burden shifts unfairly onto the real owner, who must simultaneously file a separate civil suit to establish ownership, all while being deprived of possession.
This gap in the law has been weaponized by organized land grabbers. Karachi, in particular, has seen a disturbing rise of mafias that specialize in occupying valuable property and then shielding themselves under the garb of tenancy disputes. Their modus operandi is simple: produce counterfeit tenancy documents, seek interim protection from the Rent Controller, and then prolong proceedings through adjournments, appeals, and stay orders. Even when an eviction order is eventually passed, weak enforcement mechanisms mean that execution is delayed or sabotaged—often with the connivance of local police.
The consequences are grave. Property owners are denied their fundamental right to possession, a cornerstone of ownership in any legal system. Investment in real estate becomes risky, discouraging housing development and rental markets in urban areas already strained by population growth. On a societal level, the unchecked influence of land mafias erodes public confidence in the rule of law. When citizens see criminals thriving under the cover of legal loopholes, the justice system itself appears complicit.
A comparative look at other jurisdictions shows that Sindh lags behind in plugging these gaps. Punjab, for instance, through its Punjab Rented Premises Act of 2009, requires compulsory registration of tenancy agreements. This one safeguard dramatically reduces the scope for fabricated tenancy claims. By contrast, Sindh continues to operate without such a requirement, leaving Rent Courts vulnerable to fraudulent pleadings.
Reform is therefore urgent. First and foremost, tenancy agreements should be registered as a precondition for recognition in Rent Courts. Only registered documents, verifiable through official records, should confer tenancy rights. Second, while Rent Controllers should not conduct a full-fledged ownership trial, they must be empowered to conduct at least a prima facie ownership verification before granting relief. This would deter illegal occupants from misusing the process. Third, eviction proceedings must be strictly time-bound, with penalties for frivolous adjournments, and police should be held accountable for the non-execution of eviction orders. Finally, filing false tenancy claims or producing fabricated documents should attract criminal liability, so that land grabbing is treated not as a mere civil nuisance but as an organized crime against property rights.
The Sindh Rented Premises Act was drafted in an era when the balance of power heavily favored landlords, and tenant protection was a social necessity. Four decades later, the pendulum has swung too far. Today, it is not the poor tenant who needs protection from eviction, but often the genuine landlord who needs protection from criminal syndicates posing as tenants. If this law is not amended, it will continue to serve as a shield for mafias rather than as a safeguard for citizens.
Legislation must evolve with time. The current framework has outlived its utility in its present form, and unless policymakers recognize the danger of organized land grabbing under the guise of tenancy rights, Sindh will remain vulnerable to an ever-growing property crisis. Balancing tenant security with ownership protection is not only possible but essential. The alternative is to allow loopholes in eviction law to become the very foundation of organized crime in our cities.
