SHC used suo motu powers to revoke liquor shops licences, SC says

Asks it to confine ruling to relief sought in petitions

ISLAMABAD: Issuing its written order, the Supreme Court has said the Sindh High Court (SHC) in revoking the licences of all the liquor shops in Sindh had exercised suo motu powers which it does not possess.

Disposing of two writ petitions filed against wine shops operating in Karachi’s posh neighbourhoods, the SHC on Oct 27 directed the Sindh police’s and excise department’s chiefs to implement its Oct 18 order for revoking licences of all liquor shops and shutting down all such businesses.



However, the SC’s three-member bench on Nov 23 set aside the SCH’s ruling and referred the matter back to it for swift adjudication after giving opportunity of hearing to ‘all parties’.

The order, authored by Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, said:  “In view of the scope of the writ petitions, the high court while deciding the matter afresh, shall confine its decision to the reliefs sought in the writ petitions and shall implead such persons as party who are likely to be adversely affected and who are considered to be proper or necessary for deciding the issues involved.”

It said the SHC travelled beyond the scope of the reliefs sought in the two writ petitions and on its own motion exercised suo motu powers which it does not possess, in terms of the SC decision in the case of Imran Khattak vs Sofia Waqar Khattak.

“[The SHC] cancelled licences of all the wine shops of the province … depite the fact that only one licence out of five licenses against whom grievance was raised in the writ petitions was partly in the proceedings,” it said.



The order said the main relief was sought in both these writ petitions was that the opening of five wine shops in posh, Muslim-dominated areas be declared as illegal.

Referring to the JJK Tajjak case judgment, the court said once a licence is granted, it cannot be cancelled or withdrawn without due cause and without affording adequate opportunity to the holder to the present his point of view.

“In the present case, however, licences of all the wine shops of the province… have been cancelled when all the licences were not even party to the proceedings,” it added.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30^th, 2016.