SC orders opening of Sharifs’ sugar mills in S Punjab

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered to open the sugar mills owned by Sharif family in South Punjab.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Wednesday conducted the hearing into the case. The SC also directed the other mill owners to purchase sugarcane from the farmers.

The chief justice during the hearing observed that the sugar mills for the interest of farmers were being opened now. Haseeb Waqas, Iteffaq and Chaudhry sugar mills will purchase sugarcane from farmers as the apex court directed the management of these three sugar mills to manage separate accounts and submit the details of account in court every month. The apex court abolished the assurance made by Jehangir Tareen. During the hearing, CJ said to Aitzaz Ahsan that he should not take the responsibility of task which could not be completed. The farmers should not cultivate the sugarcane in those areas and cultivate it at their own risk.

Aitzaz Ahsan told the court that crushing of sugarcane would continue after April. On this, the CJ remarked that sugar mills would purchase the sugarcane from points specified by the commissioner. The parking expenditure would be paid by the mill owners during trolleys’ stay outside the mill.

Aitzaz Ahsan said that sugarcane could be weighed inside the mills as there was no weight machine in southern Punjab.

Justice Umer Atta Bandial, a member of the bench remarked that sugar mills had assured of purchasing sugarcane from pickup points.