PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has set a two months deadline for the removal of amusement rides from the Peshawar Zoo by the contractor.

A bench consisting of Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Shahid Khan pronounced that its order issued last year for the removal of swings and other rides from the zoo should be fully implemented.

It observed that animals in the zoo were confined to cages and the installation of swings increased their misery by causing noise and disturbance.

The bench was hearing the petition of a private company, Sun Rise, which sought more time for the removal of swings, train and amusement rides from the zoo.

The petitioner’s counsel, Taimur Ali Shah, said that his client had spent Rs4 million to install amusement rides, which remained a focus of the attraction of visitors, especially children.

He said that the administration had given his client a month time, which was too little to remove those items.

Additional advocate general Syed Sikandar Hayat Shah said that the administration had ordered the removal of swings and other mechanical devices from the premises of the zoo on the order of the high court as those items had become a source of nuisance for animals kept there.

Deputy director of the zoo Haseena Ambreen told the bench that it had ordered in March 2021 to remove amusement swings from the zoo for which a month time was given to the petitioner and contractor.

She, however, said that the petitioner had not implemented those orders and the dismantling of those amusement items had been taking place at a snail’s pace.

The official said that the contractor was removing those items in intervals as he started the work but suspended it before resuming it. The bench observed that it had to take a decision keeping in view the interest of zoo animals.

It decided that it would give a two months time to the contractor to remove amusement rides from the premises of the zoo.

CONVICTED: A local court has convicted two men charged with trafficking narcotics and awarded them life imprisonment and a fine of Rs500,000 each.

Additional district and sessions judge Bakht Alam pronounced that the prosecution had proved its case against the accused, including Naveedullah and Luqman, both residents of Khyber tribal district.

The court also declared accused Kala Khan and Malakand Shinwari proclaimed offenders and issued perpetual warrants for their arrest.

Special prosecutor Irfanur Rehman said that the accused were caught red-handed by the Anti-Narcotics Force smuggling drugs as they travelled in a car on the Peshawar Ring Road. He said that the raiding team had seized 32.40kg charas concealed in different parts of the vehicle.

The special prosecutor argued that the evidence available on record connected the accused with the commission of offence.

He also said that statements of the prosecution witnesses and report of the chemical analysts of the seized narcotics also proved the charge against them.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2022