LAHORE, Nov 6: The Pakistan Flour Mills Association on Thursday decided to close down 516 mills in the Punjab for three days to protest the arrest of four millers by the Faisalabad administration on charges of arbitrarily increasing the flour price.
PFMA chairman Liaquat Ali Khan told a press conference that four millers were booked by the Faisalabad deputy district officer for revenue on Wednesday, but the sessions judge concerned on Thursday refused to grant bail to the millers in spite of their bailable offence. This, he termed, was an insult to a respectable section of society.
Mr Khan, flanked by central PFMA leaders Bilal Sufi, Nadeem Nasir and others, said that the mills would neither grind wheat nor purchase it from the food department for the next three days.
He demanded that the arrested millers be set free forthwith, the revenue officer concerned suspended and an independent inquiry commission instituted to look into the whole affair.
Responding to a question, he said there was sufficient flour in the province and there would be no shortage. He, however, feared that price of flour could go up as a result of the three-day closure of mills.
“The millers have contributed a lot to society. They brought prices down voluntarily by at least Rs15 per 20kg. They can hardly be accused of causing the price-hike. The administration is going after the millers for no fault of their own, and the government is duty-bound to set things right,” he said.
Our Staff Correspondent in Faisalabad adds: A team of local administrators raided mills and markets here the other day and rounded up four millers on charges of selling flour at higher than the prescribed rates.
The team, headed by Deputy District Officer (Revenue) Ahad Cheema, found that a 20kg bag of flour was being sold at Shaista Flour Mills, Usman Flour Mills, Metropol Flour Mills and Arshad Flour Mills for Rs205 to Rs208 instead of the prescribed ex-mill price of Rs194. The team arrested the mill-owners, Mian Arshad, Aftab Ghani, Maqsood and Anjum.
The DDO exercised powers of a special magistrate to give a hearing on the spot and sent the four persons to jail for three months besides imposing a fine of Rs70,000 on each of them.
The team also inspected the record of a number of other mills and godowns and warned the shopkeepers to sell kitchen articles at prescribed rates or be prepared to face the music.
Local trade bodies and NGOs had been demanding action against the mill owners who were fleecing the people with impunity. They appreciated the move of the local administration and urged the DCO to intensify the campaign against profiteers and hoarders.
A spokesman for the local administration said action had been taken against flour-mill owners to ensure a smooth supply of flour at the prescribed rates and there was no justification for pressuring the administration for millers’ release.