KARACHI: The Sindh government’s decision to block mobile SIMs of unvaccinated people after an applicant challenged it saying that the authorities could not impose their decisions without proper legislation has been rejected by the Sindh High Court (SHC).
SHC Judge Mohammad Shafi Siddiqui said that the government’s decision apparently is out of concern for the public welfare as COVID infected person endangers several others alongside him. The bench was irked at the petition.
“The government is concerned for your family, friends in the legal fraternity, and others in order to avoid them from being getting infected by COVID-19,” the judge said to the lawyer who filed the plea.
The applicant, however, said that the government should not forcefully obligate its decisions and if vaccination is necessary then it should adopt proper legislation.
“The government should be stopped from blocking mobile SIMs of the unvaccinated people,” he asked while making federal government and other respondents in the case.
The court sought notification from the applicant regarding a ban and rejected the plea after he was unable to do so. The SHC also imposed a fine of Rs25,000 on the lawyer for wasting precious time of the court.
The Sindh health department has conveyed a four-phase strategy to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) to block mobile SIMs of unvaccinated people in the province amid a spike in COVID-19 cases.
According to the handout, the action against unvaccinated people would be taken in four phases and initially, a warning would be sent to them to get vaccinated or face blocking of their mobile SIM.
In the second phase, the health department has recommended a ban on social media accounts of unvaccinated people. The calling services will be suspended in the third phase while the fourth phase will end up in complete blocking of mobile SIM.