ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry said on Friday that mobile SIMs are being used to incite sectarian violence, targeted killings, terror activities and for kidnappings across Pakistan, Dispatch News Desk (DND) reported.
A three-member bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, headed by Chief Justice is hearing the Balochistan law and order case today in Islamabad.
In his remarks, the Chief Justice said that today SIM cards are being sold at general stores, pharmacies and even on footpaths across the nation.
“Till few years ago, there was no case of sectarianism in Blaochistan and now Balochistan has become the heaven of criminals”, CJ said.
The Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Balochistan police, Mohammed Saleem Lehri, told SC that unregistered Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMs) are being used to create more trouble in the province.
The DIG alleged that the situation in Balochistan is such that on any given day, more than 700 SIM cards are being registered by the trouble makers. He added that they are using the electoral registration lists of the National Database Registration Authority (NADRA) to further their designs
The Chief Justice directed the mobile phone companies to take urgent corrective measures in order to ensure that SIM cards are only sold through responsible means. He also instructed them to take actions in order to curb the illegal usage of SIM cards and mobile phone services in general.
Earlier, the representative lawyer for the telecom operators said that implementation of these court orders will adversely affect these companies and their business.
DND
