The Sindh High Court on Thursday directed the interior secretary to apprise it whether the authorities could issue arms licences in the form of booklet. A division bench, headed by Justice Nadeem Akhtar, had taken up an application filed by the federal government through which it requested the court to modify its earlier order against issuance of plastic card arms licences.
The counsel for the government stated that in the aftermath of the terrorist attack on Peshawar's Army Public School, the authorities had received a large number of requests for issuance of arms licences from civilians, military personnel and public and private institutions for issuance of prohibited and non-prohibited bore arms licences on the security grounds.
Hence, he asked the court to modify its restricting order and permit the authorities to issue arms licences. In response to the court notice, the counsel for petitioner filed a reply to the government's plea, stating that the authorities had created an impression that the ruling was an impediment in issuance of the arms licences. He said that the court had restrained issuance of only computerised plastic card arm licences. He added the government could issue the arms licences in the form of booklet.
Earlier, the court had declared the plastic card licence scheme illegal and without lawful authority. Later, the petitioners had filed a contempt application, stating the authorities were still issuing plastic arm licences despite the SHC's ruling and prayed the court to proceed against them for disobeying its order.
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