MITHl: Members of civil society and the general public continued their protest in Chelhar town on Thursday in protest against demolition of a three-century-old Talpur era fort near the town.

Bharumal Amrani, noted writer and poet, and others who led the protest told Dawn that despite their continuous protest, the authorities concerned were not ready to move into action against the people involved in the demolition of the historical fort constructed by Mir Fateh Mohammad Talpur in 1800.

He said that after pulling down the historical structure the land-grabber mafia was busy erecting new buildings on the site under the very nose of police and local administration.

Mr Amrani said that forts constructed by Talpur rulers including Mir Karam Ali Khan and Mir Fateh Mohammad Khan and others in Chelhar, Diplo, Islamkot, Sengario, Mithi and Khadi faced the threat of destruction at the hands of the land-grabber mafia.

He alleged that local forest officers had sold the land around the fort to influential people and demanded that it be measured again to protect the historical sites.