People barred from visiting courts 'unnecessarily' amid coronavirus fears

Decision comes after Sindh Bar Council writes letter to SHC registrar to restrict public from visiting courts

KARACHI: Sindh High Court (SHC) Chief Justice Ahmed Ali Shaikh ordered relevant authorities on Friday to restrict the public from visiting courts unnecessarily, in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus. He also gave instructions for fumigation inside court buildings and jails.

The directives were issued in the wake of a letter written by the Sindh Bar Council (SBC) to the SHC registrar, requesting Shaikh to restrict the public from entering courts amid the coronavirus scare.

As per the letter, thousands of people visit courts daily, which can potentially lead to a COVID-19 outbreak. Maintaining that preventive measures against the virus were being taken across the world, the SBC also stressed the need for initiating awareness campaigns about coronavirus and asked for a ban on shaking hands in courts. It further calls for screening people at the courts' entry points.

Seven new coronavirus cases surface at Taftan border, jumping Pakistan tally to 28

In the wake of this letter, the SHC registrar issued a circular, restricting the entry of "irrelevant" people to courts and those visiting "unnecessarily," stating that only those persons would be allowed inside courts whose cases were to be heard.

Separately, Sindh Prisons IG Nusrat Maghan announced that prisoners across the province would be released on parole two months before their jail sentence ended, due to the spread of coronavirus.
The decision will not apply to those imprisoned for involvement in terrorism, honour killing, corruption, treason or espionage.