LAHORE, Jan 26: The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Punjab government to work out a schedule for allowing kite flying for 15 days as provided by the recent law so as to enforce the concession across the province simultaneously in the spring season.

Comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and Justice Syed Tasaddaq Husain Jillani, the apex court bench also instructed the provincial government that rules under the recently-promulgated Punjab Prohibition of Kite Flying Ordinance should be framed till Feb 2 when the court would again take up the matter.

The court asked the government that rules for the registration of manufacturers, traders and sellers of kites and other related material should be notified within a week as provided by the law.

The court observed that the provision in the law to allow kite flying for 15 days in a year could be misused as different city district governments and district administrations, authorized to give consent to the concession after prior permission by the provincial government, might issue such orders one after the other. In such a case, kite flying could virtually go on for the whole year which was a negation of the spirit of the law and the apex court’s orders.

When advocate-general Chaudhry Muhammad Aftab Iqbal submitted the ordinance, the court observed that it was in consonance with the spirit of the apex court order. However, SCBA president Malik Muhammad Qayyum submitted that the ordinance was a bad law as it legitimized an illegal activity for 15 days, which was a flagrant violation of the legislative process.

Malik Qayyum also submitted that the concession reflected the sentiments of President Gen Pervez Musharraf, who had said the other day that kite flying and Basant were a source of pleasure. Malik Qayyum is otherwise the counsel for about 90 kite manufacturers and dealers.

The court also took notice of the anomaly and observed that the 15-day concession should not have been provided. It observed that manufacturing and trade of kite flying material, particularly manjha (razor-sharp string), must not be allowed at all.

The Supreme Court started hearing of the case for which the chief justice had taken a suo moto notice under tight security arrangements. The police had closed the passage of all vehicular traffic and even pedestrians at the GPO Chowk on The Mall on the one end and Nabha Road on the other end to prevent the gathering of traders and manufacturers, who came in large numbers in November and December when the court proceeded in the matter.

At the outset, the police submitted on a court query that 111 cases of violating the ban were reported between Dec 8, 2005 and Jan 24, 2006 and offenders, including 10 from Islamabad, were arrested. But when the police produced four ‘offenders’ from Islamabad, the court took a serious notice of the police action because all of them were children between seven and 10 years of age.

The court ordered that action should be taken against ASI Shaukat Ali who arrested them. The court directed the Islamabad IGP to initiate an inquiry against the ASI with a report to the court in seven days as to why the official should not be suspended from service for negligence.

The court allowed the children to go after censuring them against kite flying. Five more offenders, including three sellers, were also produced by the police and they stated that they were allowed to be released on bail. The court allowed proceedings against them.

LESCO: Barrister Shahid Hamid, who presented a report on behalf of the Lahore Electric Supply Company, submitted that the ban on kite flying had made a positive impact on the power supply.