Respected Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa Sahib

I hope this letter finds its way to your esteemed attention. With due respect, I dare to address you after much contemplation. Your vigilance, sir, is not concealed from a far-sighted perspective of the ongoing situations within the country. While penning this letter, I also pondered why we waste the time of the judiciary. The solution to political issues lies in the power of votes, yet by bringing cases to the judiciary, we not only waste the time of the courts but also prolong the duration of thousands of other cases.
However, certain issues cannot be resolved solely by the power of votes. It’s a separate matter that, in a developed country, these issues would find solutions through the power of votes. Unfortunately, despite 75 years of democracy, our political parties are still engulfed in immaturity. Chief Justice Sahib, today you have to attend court sessions, so I come to you with a genuine concern without wasting your time.
Respected Chief Justice, while the constitution guarantees my fundamental rights, so does your court. Through this letter, I present the plight of Karachi at your service. Regardless of whichever political party is in power, Karachi, which provides economic vitality to the nation, continues to witness the violation of residents’ basic rights.
Honourable Chief Justice, this city is also yours; you’ve spent considerable time here. Sir, isn’t it my fundamental right to have access to clean air and water? Isn’t it my fundamental right to move around an area without hindrance? Look at the president of Karachi; there isn’t a single street where vendors aren’t harassed, claiming that they are poor and their livelihood should not be snatched away. If this is the case, then they should be legally permitted so that corrupt officers of Karachi police, who blatantly extort 200 to 300 rupees from these vendors daily and collect millions monthly, are stopped, and laws are enacted to deposit this money or lesser amounts into the national treasury, contributing to the country’s revenue.
But Chief Sahib, who will question those senior police officers who don’t own houses in Defence or Clifton? And what to say about officers bigger than them? Honourable Chief Justice, do I have to buy water? Does the Prime Minister also fill his tank with water? I am ready to purchase water, but I am just a few steps away from the sea, yet my pipelines remain dry. I pay the water bill to the Water Board, yet I end up buying water from tankers.
Honourable Chief Justice, illegal settlements are rapidly increasing in Karachi; there’s a proliferation of encroachments. Residential areas are being commercialised daily, yet while courts have given verdicts, there is no action to implement them. In a country where court decisions are not respected, what can the future hold? Large billboards are banned on buildings, but they are visible on all major buildings! Honourable Chief Justice, if an institution is working in the health sector, it’s the ACVs, but hospitals like Jinnah Hospital and Civil Hospital lack medicines. Jinnah Hospital is the most successful business outside Karachi because they tell the relatives of deceased patients that medicines are not available; go buy them, and for this, there are several medical stores outside Jinnah Hospital.
Honourable Chief Justice, buses that are 50–50 years old emit so much polluted smoke that the city appears polluted until the night. Those providing fitness certificates to these dilapidated buses are never held accountable. I respectfully urge you, Chief Justice Sahib, to hold a court session in Karachi and ask the IG Sindh and road transport about where the fitness certificates for these buses come from. How much daily bribery is received for allowing encroachments in the city? How many officers involved in water theft and the embezzlement of billions by the Karachi Water Board have been caught by the NAB? If they were arrested, did the water come through the pipelines of Karachi homes? Honourable Chief Justice, your court is the guarantor of my fundamental rights, and I have a lot of hope and trust in you. I request that you find a path so that all these issues in Karachi can be resolved.