Photo of funeral procession passing through sewage water angers CJP

Published March 20, 2018
The photo showing a funeral procession passing through sewage water, which the CJP took a notice of on Tuesday. — Photo provided by author
The photo showing a funeral procession passing through sewage water, which the CJP took a notice of on Tuesday. — Photo provided by author

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Tuesday took suo motu notice of a picture circulating on social media that showed a funeral procession passing through sewage water.

During the hearing of a case, the CJP directed the attention of the attorney general and advocate general towards the photo.

"People are walking to offer funeral prayers and they have been left impure [due to walking through the unsanitary water]," Justice Nisar observed.

Asking which city the scene captured in the photo belonged to, the CJP directed media representatives to also look at the photo and point out the area it originated from.

"This filth is a threat to human health and cleanliness," he remarked.

"We will take the MNA, councillor and other officials of whatever area is depicted in the photo to task [over the unsanitary conditions]," Justice Nisar said.

The apex court, under its 2018 agenda, is focusing on human rights issues, particularly those relating to the people’s right to quality education and healthcare. However, this course of action is also being seen as an overstepping of boundaries, similar to the Iftikhar Chaudhry era.

The chief justice has stood by the court's actions, reiterating that such criticism will not deter him from exercising what he considers is his "constitutional right."

Opinion

Editorial

Digital growth
Updated 25 Apr, 2024

Digital growth

Democratising digital development will catalyse a rapid, if not immediate, improvement in human development indicators for the underserved segments of the Pakistani citizenry.
Nikah rights
25 Apr, 2024

Nikah rights

THE Supreme Court recently delivered a judgement championing the rights of women within a marriage. The ruling...
Campus crackdowns
25 Apr, 2024

Campus crackdowns

WHILE most Western governments have either been gladly facilitating Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza, or meekly...
Ties with Tehran
Updated 24 Apr, 2024

Ties with Tehran

Tomorrow, if ties between Washington and Beijing nosedive, and the US asks Pakistan to reconsider CPEC, will we comply?
Working together
24 Apr, 2024

Working together

PAKISTAN’S democracy seems adrift, and no one understands this better than our politicians. The system has gone...
Farmers’ anxiety
24 Apr, 2024

Farmers’ anxiety

WHEAT prices in Punjab have plummeted far below the minimum support price owing to a bumper harvest, reckless...