Kite string claims life of minor girl in Sanda

CM suspends SHO over failure to enforce ban in his area

LAHORE:

A minor girl lost her life as a kite string slit her throat in Sanda area on Sunday.

The victim identified as Hareem Fatima was riding home on her bike when she met the accident. Her father who was nearby immediately rushed her to a hospital where she was pronounced brought dead.

The chief minister of Punjab took notice of the incident and suspended Sanda Station House Officer (SHO) Sharjil Zia for failing to implement the kite flying ban in the area.

Despite the suspension of SHOs or other police officers in the past as a punitive measure for not implementing the ban holistically, report of casualties in such incidents keep pouring in.

In April, a man identified as Shahid was on his way on a motorcycle in Shadman area when a kite string cut through his neck. He was taken to a nearby hospital for the treatment of the severe injury.

A similar case was reported on March 24 in Factory Area. Danish, 25, was driving a motorcycle on Ferozpur road when a suspended kite string injured him. He was shifted to a hospital in a serious condition.

In November, 8-year-old Abu Bakar was critically injured in Wahadat Colony on a weekend and two weeks before this incident a youth, identified as Amir Ali, succumbed to a kite string injury in Mughalpura area.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Ashfaq Ahmad Khan had taken notice of the incident and suspended Mughalpura SHO Mudassarullah Khan to coerce the law enforcement officers to enforce the kite ban diligently.

In the past, the authorities had also suspended deputy superintendents of police and in a few instances even a superintendent of police to pressure them for stricter measures to end the deadly sport.

The Punjab Prohibition of Kite Flying Ordinance 2001 recognises kite flying as a non-bailable offence and the person found guilty of this sport without prior permission of authorities can be arrested by a police officer of sub-inspector rank or above.