THIS is apropos Col (r) Anwar Jan Baber’s letter ‘Shisha: police raids’ (Jan 7). Why should we object to the police raid on restaurants serving shisha? It is the government’s responsibility to protect the health of its citizen.

Maybe Col (r) Baber is not aware of the fact that it’s illegal to serve shisha in the restaurant according to existing laws of the country. Shisha use is associated with serious health consequences, not only for its users but also for those present in a restaurant.

Our police are doing the right thing by taking measures to implement the country’s law. In my humble more such raids should be carried out to protect the health of non-smokers present in the restaurant. As a non-smoker it’s my right to breathe in clean air, and a shisha or cigarette smoker cannot take away this right.

Regarding his comment that boys were ‘enjoying’ shisha, may I ask him if tomorrow our youth start ‘enjoying’ heroin, cocaine and other addictive substances at a public place like a restaurant, would we not take any action?

Javaid A. Khan
Chair, National Alliance for Tobacco Control
Karachi