SHC asks why stadium should not be shifted outside city if closure of roads is necessary

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday directed the provincial home department and District East deputy commissioner to file comments on a petition against the closure of roads and streets around the Karachi Stadium during cricket matches.

The petition was filed during the closure of roads around the National Stadium during the recent Pakistan-South Africa test match. A division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar observed that citizens suffered a lot due to the closure of roads under the present traffic situation in the city.

The high court observed that traffic situation was already bad on the roads in normal days and it worsened when some roads were closed. The bench inquired a provincial law officer why the stadium should not be shifted outside the city as several patients and ambulances could not move easily due to closure of roads and traffic jams.

The SHC directed the officer to submit an appropriate security plan during cricket matches in the stadium.

The SP Traffic East filed comments on behalf of the traffic police and submitted that specific roads were closed for vehicular traffic leading towards the national stadium and in order to facilitate the commute of people and help them, they shared their press release with a road map with the print and electronic media.

The SHC directed the provincial law officer to file comments on behalf of the home department as well as the East deputy commissioner, and ordered the East additional deputy commissioner tp appear before the court on February 17.

Pasban Democratic Party (PDP) media coordinator Aziz Fatima had submitted in the petition that the provincial government had paralysed the traffic of Karachi by closing all the roads around the National Stadium for six days from January 26 to 31 from 8am till 8pm, which severely affected the routine life of citizens and was thus a violation of the fundamental rights.

She said police and law enforcement agencies were even not allowing pedestrians to walk near the stadium which was against the constitutional provisions and people could not even use those roads in case of emergency.

The petitioner submitted that the Supreme Court had observed in a case that no roads should be blocked in any circumstances and therefore the Sindh government violated the orders of the apex court when it closed the roads around the stadium.

She also submitted that the National Stadium was covered and cordoned with three boundary walls which were sufficient to secure the players participating in the matches and the government would easily beef up security outside the boundary walls and gates.

The SHC was informed that two main hospitals of the megacity, Aga Khan Hospital and Liaquat National Hospital were situated in the area, and the roads’ closure made it difficult for patients to reach these hospitals in emergency.

The petitioner submitted that blocking of busy roads for the sake of holding international matches in the National Stadium showed complete failure of the administration.

She requested the SHC to declare the act of closing roads for the purpose of international matches in the National Stadium as illegal, unconstitutional, void ab initio, against the principle of national justice and international laws, and also against the orders of the Supreme Court.

MPA’s disqualification

The Sindh High Court issued notices on Thursday to Pakistan Peoples Party MPA Mohammad Sajid Jokhio, the Election Commission of Pakistan and others on a petition seeking the disqualification of Jokhio.

Petitioner Shah Mohammad Zaman submitted that Jokhio was elected MPA from provincial assembly constituency PS-87 in Malir; however, he also occupied the seat of vice chairman of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board.

He contended that under Article 63 (1) of the constitution, a person can be disqualified from being an elected member of parliament if he is in service of any statutory body, which is owned or controlled by the government or in which the government has a controlling share or interest.

He submitted that the KWSB was a statutory body and a public utility company, and the appointment of MPA Jokhio as its vice chairman was a clear violation of the constitution. The court was requested to disqualify the respondent lawmaker as an elected member of the provincial assembly, and to direct the ECP to hold a by-election in the constituency.