KARACHI: The Karachi Consumer Protection Court has dismissed a criminal complaint filed by a town municipal corporation against the Kababjees restaurant chain over advertising boards, after the corporation asked to withdraw the case on the grounds that the dispute was civil in nature.
Judge Asadullah Memon of the Consumer Protection Court/Civil Judge and Judicial Magistrate, Karachi Central, dismissed the complaint as withdrawn in an order dated Nov. 4 under Section 248 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
The complaint was filed by Town Municipal Corporation (TMC) New Karachi under Section 136 of the Sindh Local Government Act 2013. It named Kebabjees Fried Chicken, through its owner or proprietor.
In an application dated Oct. 28, the corporation’s counsel, Jalil Ahmed Sheikh, told the court the matter was civil in nature and asked for the complaint to be withdrawn so the corporation could adopt the proper remedy, including filing a recovery suit against the respondent.
Asif Ali Abro, counsel for Kebabjees, had earlier asked the court to dismiss the complaint under Section 203 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. In an application dated Sept. 24, he argued that offenses under the Sindh Local Government Act are listed in the Sixth Schedule, while the Fifth Schedule, which covers advertisements, deals with taxes, tolls and fees and is civil in nature.
He also argued that the corporation had not shown the Sindh government’s approval for its by-laws and higher rates under Section 139(4) of the act. He cited a Sindh High Court ruling reported as 2020 MLD 1616 for the position that criminal complaints in purely civil matters are liable to be dismissed.
Abro said town municipal corporations across Sindh, particularly in Karachi, have been lodging criminal complaints in court against businesses over advertising boards displayed outside shops, outlets and malls under the Sindh Local Government Act. He described the use of criminal law in a civil matter as an abuse of the legal process that goes beyond what the legislature intended.
The criminal case has been disposed of against M/S Kababjees, a leading national food brand in Pakistan.
