Chief Justice Saqib Nisar on Friday complained of "indiscipline" in Sindh after being confronted by the burgeoning backlog of cases logged in the apex court's Karachi registry.

"Perhaps I should hear petitions in Karachi on a regular basis for six months at a time. There is a pile of problems here," the chief justice said as he took up a land-grabbing petition.

"There is no discipline in Sindh," he complained.

The chief justice subsequently turned his attention to a petition regarding the illegal occupation of land meant for the Gomibai Jawaharmal Ladies Club in Larkana, which is considered a significant part of the province’s heritage.

In 2004, the government had decided to sell the club and the plot to a builder, but later abandoned the idea when members of the club formed a citizens’ action forum and launched a campaign against the decision.

In 2015, however, media had reported that the club had lost three acres its land to a hotel set up by a local mafia. Taking notice, then chief justice Nasirul Mulk had ordered the Supreme Court registrar to take account of the matter as a human rights case.

"US President Donald Trump is not [even] allowed to set up a stall in some street in Washington, but over here, people do as they please," the chief justice remarked during Friday's hearing, which was attended by Sindh Advocate General Zameer Ghumro.

"We will proceed in accordance with the law," he promised.

The court subsequently sought the records of the case and issued notices to multiple institutions, including the revenue board, directing that all illegal buildings be torn down.

Heritage site

The Gomibai Jawaharmal Ladies Club had been a significant feature of Larkana’s heritage and had hosted some famous guests in its time. It regularly played host to various cultural activities organised by Hindus, Christians and Muslim women before Partition.

The club was built by a Hindu deputy collector, who named it after his sister. On Jan 3, 1934, the club was inaugurated by R.E. Gibson, the wife of a senior British bureaucrat. The club reportedly then had around 107 members and ran without any financial support from the government.