Incompetence led to lion’s death

IHC hints at contempt proceedings against MoCC officials

ISLAMABAD:

Following the deaths of a lion and a lioness, while transferring them to a sanctuary from the Marghzar Zoo, the court has hinted it could initiate contempt of court proceedings against top officials of the ministry of climate change (MoCC).

This was suggested on Monday as a single-member bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), comprising Chief Justice Athar Minallah heard a case about the welfare of animals at the zoo.

During Monday’s hearing, Chief Justice Minallah sought the names of Islamabad Wildlife Management Board’s (IWMB) members and all other officials responsible for the deaths of wild animals at the zoo.

CJ Minallah remarked that prima facie, the animals were killed due to the incompetence of the IWMB, citing the order it had given on May 21 where it had tasked the board to shift the animals from the zoo to sanctuaries.

Lahore Zoo staff, animals tested for virus

The court said that it had also read a notification issued by the federal cabinet issued on March 16 in which it was stated that the animals were being shifted to the Lahore Zoo instead of a sanctuary.

The court noted that officials of the Climate Change Ministry were more interested in taking over control of the zoo’s management than to shift the wild animals to a safer place.

“MoCC, Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) and Capital Development Authority (CDA) are all just doing politics,” CJ Minallah stated.

Noting that the federal government had issued a notification on creating a board, he inquired, “Who are the board members apart from the minister?”.

The court added that members of the committee, including the Climate Change Minister, MoCC secretary, and other members should be tried for contempt of court. CJ Minallah further asked if a first information report (FIR) had been registered against the board members because they had disregarded the court’s verdict.

“How can these people take care of humans when they cannot protect animals,” CJ Minallah remarked.

The court then summoned all relevant officials and adjourned the case until Tuesday (today).

Court irked at authorities over deaths of animals at Islamabad Zoo​​​​​​​

IWMB sought extension

Earlier, the IWMB had decided to approach the IHC, seeking an extension in the deadline to relocate animals from the Islamabad Zoo.

In an emergency meeting of the board held late last week to review the deaths of animals during their relocation, the board had decided that the court will be asked to extend the time for transferring animals from the zoo until it prepares Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in this regard.

MoCC Deputy Director Muhammad Saleem said that meeting participants severely condemned the fire incident in the lion cage and agreed to initiate disciplinary action against those involved.

Islamabad zoo animals handed over to SWD​​​​​​​

The meeting also agreed that an experts committee will be notified under Prof ZB Mirza to establish SOPs for the safe relocation of the remaining animals. The committee will submit its report within ten days, the ministry official said.

The MoCC also set up a high-powered inquiry committee to probe the deaths of animals at the zoo and submit its report within a week. The inquiry committee will be chaired by the MoCC Additional Secretary Joudat Ayaz and will probe the causes of the recent deaths of the zoo animals apart from affixing responsibility.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 4^th, 2020.