Supreme Court chucks out ban, rules kites will fly
A sport cannot be blamed if a person playing it dies, noted Justice Mian Saqib Nisar.
People die in traffic accidents but driving has not been banned, he said, adding that cricket would not be banned if someone were to die after being hit with the ball.
The court had taken suo motu notice in 2005 on Shehzad Ahmed Sheikh’s application. Sheikh, the father of a 28-year-old man whose vocal cords suffered irreparable damage after his throat was slit by kite strong, prayed the court to impose a “complete ban” on kite flying.
Earlier, Advocate Qamar Zaman Qureshi, counsel for the Kite Flying Association, appearing on Friday submitted that kite flying was regulated under the Punjab Prohibition of Kite Flying Ordinance 2001. Justice Tasadduq Hussain Jilani, the head of the bench, asked him who had stopped his clients from flying kites to which Qureshi replied that the activity had been banned in 2010 by the Lahore High Court. At this, Justice Jilani said that kite-flying should continue, but in accordance with the law. “What remains to be seen is whether the number of deaths [caused from kite flying] declines as a result of regulation,” he said.
An additional advocate general – who had been asked by the court to apprise it about the condition of the petitioner’s son and the steps taken by the Punjab government for his treatment – told the court that the man could be treated in Pakistan. “He is under treatment at Children’s Hospital and recovering,” said the AAG.
Hearing this, Justice Saqib Nisar remarked that he was pleased to know that the man could receive the required treatment in Pakistan. He then asked the AAG how much compensation had the family been paid by the government. The law officer said that the government had given Rs500,000 to the family. He said that according to Sheikh, he had spent Rs1.5 million on his son’s treatment. The AAG said that he would try his best to persuade the government to pay additional compensation to the family.
The court then disposed of the case for having borne fruit.
COMMENTS (35)
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People who need a nanny-state to tell them what to do don't deserve the freedom that they have a right to. Don't leave everything into the hands of the government lest we regret it a few decades down the road. Grown adults should be deemed responsible enough to fly kites, and as far as regulation is concerned--only dorr that isn't infused with shreds of glass and metal should be made legal. Those who are against the SC's decision have the same prejudice that our British overlords had pre-1947, that we, or at least the majority of our people aren't civilised enough to make our own decisions regarding how we live our lives.
A shameless decision by the court.
It will be impossible for the Govt to regulate. Especially since almost everybody wants to break the law. Only people themselves can stop this by refusing to buy twines that are extremely dangerous. And ofc the senseless aerial firing.
However this is a country that managed to get Zardari elected, so i have very little faith. This country can not be trusted to hold a simple, fun, activity. Especially since fun for some is aerial firing, and flying the sharpest twine.
there never used to be such scenarios long time ago, its the thread that needs to be taken in consideration and regulated , if this is a sport then it needs to be played with true sportsmanspiritship , iam a die heart fan of basant, what we need to do is bring change from our own and not to buy such threads even if they are available and help legal authorities to grab such people selling such threads. i think a persons life is more precious than any thing . so i wont celebrate basant until its properly regulated.
Considering the ground realities, it cannot be regulated. I mean, The ways it could be regulated may include 1)Use of softer strings and smaller kites 2)Allow kite flying in specific areas.
Option # 1 is simply impossible to implement. Option # 2 would only work if it is strictly implemented(which is not much likely).
They say "What remains to be seen is whether the number of deaths [caused from kite flying] declines as a result of regulation". Seriously WTF? 'decline' ??? Unless some regulation prevents every single death from this completely "waili" activity, the regulation would be useless.
It's a shame.... it's not who is playing this sport dies, its an innocent person / by standard. Ridding his bike, walking on the street who has to pay with is life for a little bit of fun we get by flying a piece of paper in the air with killer strings..... nothing is fun if a life of other individual is at stake. most of us can and will only realize the loss of a loved one once it happens to ourselves.... its easy to pass a judgment on other persons loss!!! especially when the other person is not even involved in the so called sport
and for those who are saying "regulate not ban".... hello..... 180million population and all Pakistanis!!!... who's gonna follow the regulations and who is gonna impose????
i had a sufferer from this kite flying.he was a young boy.he had some dreams.not to do stupid quite flying for his parents. Really bad decission!
FINALLY!!!!
@aaaa: how can a rod prevent such incidents? Seems dangerous. Unfortunately,kite flying is not regulated in indian north at all. Looks like the sale of the "cutting" thread should be banned and only soft materials allowed.solves the issue.
its sad to see the state of our journalists as the HEADLINE of the article is not what the article really says....unless ofcourse the journalist him/herself is under the impression that the ban has been lifted...or that there was a ban imposed......bad journalism, and a confusing, misleading article....maybe the Punjab regulations ought to have been looked at and we shud then be informed as to what we can legally do with kites....i guess i was happy to see the headline and feel sad after reading it that it made no sense...... :'(
Very disappointed. It's going to be a mess as always. There should be designated areas/large parks for kite flying in the city and flying a kite anywhere outside those areas should bear a heavy fine. That's the only way you can prevent people getting their throats slit in public areas and getting hit by stray bullets. A premature decision
very nice decision
You may just as well ban people from "human error" in all they do and expect them to become perfect afterwards. Yep. That sounds dumb. That's because it is dumb.
@fool: 1000% agree with you...and one other thing people who fly kites rarely dies, but the pedestrians and bicycle and motorcycle riders are the one who mostly suffer.. they go out of homes for their necessities and their slit throat bodies go back to their homes... so as i mentioned above who ever wants to fly a kite should go to the judicial complex, or where the families of our ''LORDS'' go out
Having written an article about a basant that I had enjoyed decades ago, I feel additional responsibility to request everyone involved not to indulge in chemical dors and "chimorna" (using metal strings). I also request the courts to place heavy penalties for such activities. Further, law enforcers should also ensure that the law is enforced in letter and spirit. BUT above everyone else, it is the duty and responsibility of everyone involved in the kite-flying activities to ensure public safety. This includes, traders, manufacturers, importers and PRACTITIONERS of the sport/ activity. My article on the subject can be viewed at: http://tribune.com.pk/story/336864/the-basant-that-was/
no words for it, kite flying is a necessary compare to human life loss. Regulate? is the court in its right senses? everybody knows how alcohal is regulated in this country, or to say gambling, or to name drugs. alcohal is not deadly, please allow it. gambling aint fatal, please allow it.
dont tell me they are banned by religion! because religion also put bar on activities if it results in neighbor discomfort.
@fool:
My dear Friend!
Yes you are right, car is necessity, But death is death and people still die in car accidents. People die of smoking as well yet it's not banned. And people die of Cricket as well as football (in football spectators die they don't play? Managers die of heart attack, they don't play either), wrestling, bull fighting, boxing and in many other sports. Kite flying provides great enjoyment to those who fly and it's a proper sport with competition. This sport can be regulate, at least give regulatory authority a chance to do so, please.
Regards. Omar.
In my Humble opine I think it's a fair decision. Everything has it's pro's and con's in this world and so does kite flying. We need regulations to regulate this sport to a certain level where it can be enjoyed harmlessly. If the competitions are allowed under organized teams then those teams can ensure that non- glass coated and thin twine is used in those competitions. Furthermore small kites will be introduced on cheap rates hence people can afford it, only then no other twine like Chemical or Tandi will be used to re-collect them (that cause the load shedding problem). As far as the concern of safety, people should use helmets anyway, and with the arrival of thin twine no throat will be cut as that thread would be breakable easily.
Like above, there are number of ways to prevent accidents if one pays attention.
Regards, Omar.
Basant should be celebrated away from roads. Most suitable places are Parks, outer city limits
Rare but Good Decision
if someone wants to fly a kite, they should fly it in the above two gentlemen lords who gave verdicts in favor of kite flying
great decision wel don ,if every 1 put antina infront on bike thn no acident occur.we must want permision 4 kite flying whole year at open and safe places out ot of city. again thanks to supreme court
@mahad: i think you are being unreasonable, it's a sport and we celebrate it uniquely...it promotes lots of economic activity regulating is properly is the reasonable way forward.
@Mahad
Why don't you enter a petition to ban cars, so many innocent bystanders get killed by them....senseless
I used to travel by motor cycle during the ole kite flying days....and i had a small antenna tied in front of my bike. Whats the point of banning the only festival in the country which was a source of huge revenues. Lahore, and many other cities give a zombie look without this awesome festival
Traffic accidents are regulated because everyone takes care while crossing a road. A tiny metal wire on your bike can save your life.
I had also had a tiny metal rod tied to my helmets chin so no kite thread could come near my neck. People can take better care of themselves without any regulations. You just need to knock some sense into them.
Basant Rules
Very bad judgment, not only people die flying kites, but many innocent people also die who have nothing to do with Kite flying.
worst decision......giving license to kill innocent people once again......you cant use your bike anymore.......and we are already facing load shedding....now we will see unwanted power breakdowns due to "tandi" falling on electric wires....
Just when people started living with it the court has lifted the ban. unlike any other sport basant has caused many casualties. the irony is that the dead are more often not the person playing the sport. with already small amount of human resource, i don't think Punjab police will be able to implement the regulations.
Good decision by the court. Regulate the sale of kites and twine, and if there is a need then only allow flying kites in certain parks and open grounds.
thank you good decision, kite flying must be regulated not ban.