ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan ordered the reopening of shopping malls across the country on Monday, which were shut down during the lockdown imposed to curb the coronavirus pandemic.
Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) has directed Commissioner Karachi to ensure implementation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) instead of sealing markets and directed to reopen all sealed markets of Karachi including Zainab Market Karachi as mostly the poor visit it.
The court also summoned Chief Secretary Sindh and asked Sindh government to submit directions regarding opening of malls.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed remarked that if the shops are shut down then shopkeepers will ‘die of hunger rather than the coronavirus’.
Chief Justice also remarked that authorities should not spread fear among masses and directed to concerned officials to not take bribes or misbehave with the businessmen and customers.
The top court picked up the case to keep a review on the measures taken by the Centre and provincial governments to stem the spread of the virus among people.
So far, the top court has summoned officials from provinces, NDMA, Health department, and local government setup in cities to present a report on the policy and implementation of measures.
