THIS is with reference to the report “Ordinance to check parents ‘eviction’ from homes issued” (May 9). I wish to voice some grave concerns over the newly-promulgated Parental Protection Ordinance 2021, which I find to be clearly one-sided.

Though my views in principle are in line with the core of the said ordinance, unfortunately it has totally missed the possibility that there may well be cases in which the parents may be at fault. It is as if such a possibility does not exist even though, being humans, we all have our shortcomings.

There are many cases in our society, like any other society, where a person is involved in domestic violence, drug abuse, is illiterate or has married more than once. In all such cases, the parents — either father or mother — can force the children out without being just.

Also, in many cases, fathers leave home on their own because they are not willing to take responsibility for their family or are involved in some other malicious activity. Though rare, even mothers are known to have left the family home. All such individuals can manipulate their way back by using the said ordinance.

This unjust ordinance gives an unfair advantage to all such parents to file complaints against their children, blackmail them, and force their entry back into the family home.

The ordinance very much violates human rights by not keeping all citizens equal in the eyes of the law. It has sort of already labelled all children as culprits, and all parents as victims.

I would urge all concerned to reassess the impact and repercussions of this ordinance in detail. Perhaps, the opinions of those who have lived through these troubles should be taken into account rather than making a law on some self-assumed hypothesis.

Ahmed Mujtaba
Lahore

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2021