Rs4.8m fines imposed on profiteers from Jan 1 to April 20, SHC told

The divisional and district administrations have exercised their powers under the relevant prevalent laws to control profiteering and hoarding and a number of profiteers have been sent to prison and fined Rs4,892,700 from January 1 to April 20, 2020, the Karachi commissioner told the Sindh High Court on Friday.

Filing comments on a petition seeking the enforcement of laws pertaining to control of hoarding and black market of essential commodities in the province, the commissioner said the Karachi district and divisional administration would continue to take action against violators to prevent profiteering and hoarding in the city.

The court had earlier asked the Sindh government to constitute a task force under the supervision of the deputy commissioners of the districts for taking action against the menace of profiteering, black marketing and hoarding.

It had directed the provincial law officer to submit reports from the divisional deputy commissioners of the province of all districts on what efforts were being made by them to control the black marketing, profiteering and hoarding of essential commodities in their territories.

The court was informed that a standard operating procedure had been given to the deputy commissioners and additional deputy commissioners of the province for monitoring the prices to check profiteering and hoarding in the Karachi division. According to the reports, assistant commissioners had taken action against milk retailers, fruit and vegetable vendors and other essential commodities’ shopkeepers for violations of the relevant laws.

A division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar adjourned the hearing till May 7 as the petitioner wanted time to go through the comments and file some additional documents.

The petitioner, advocate M Tariq Mansoor, submitted in the petition that several laws pertaining to the checking and controlling of hoarding and black market of essential commodities, including the Sindh Registration of Godown Act, Hoarding and Black Market Act 1948 and Sindh Essential Commodities Price Control &Prevention of Profiting and Hoarding Act 2005, had been promulgated from time to time by the provincial government, but the same were not being enforced in letter and spirit.

He said the Sindh Registration of Godown Act 1995 was promulgated some 25 years back, but it could not be enforced properly, resulting in citizens facing artificial crises and shortages of essential commodities such as tomatoes, onion, sugar and wheat, and becoming victims of black marketing, hoarding and profiteering by unscrupulous elements.

He said the Karachi Essential Article (price control and anti-hoarding Act) 1953 was enacted for regulating the possession, distribution and sale of essential commodities in the Karachi division, but unfortunately the same was not enforced in letter and spirit. He submitted that due to lack of enforcement of essential commodities’ prices, the people were compelled to purchase commodities at higher prices without any check and control by the provincial and federal governments, which were supposed to ensure supplies of these commodities at the notified prices.

The court was requested to call the record from the provincial government with regard to the enforcement of the Sindh Registration of Godown Act and other essential commodities’ laws and to direct the government to ensure the sale of essential commodities at the notified rates in the province. The court directed the federal and provincial law officers to file comments on what efforts had been made for the implementation of the laws.