The Sindh High Court (SHC) was informed on Tuesday that the wildlife trafficker, who was caught at the Karachi airport with 218 black-spotted turtles, was sentenced to pay penalty of Rs 2,00,000 under customs laws.
A division bench headed by Chief Justice Maqbool Baqar had taken up a petition filed by non-government organisations including the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan, Pakistan Animal Welfare Society and others seeking an investigation into the smuggling of endangered species including black-spotted turtles and tortoises, and prosecution of wildlife smugglers under anti-smuggling and customs laws.
Advocate Ghulam Haider Shaikh submitted to the court an order passed by the adjudication officer of Collectorate of Customs (Preventive) which reveals that alleged trafficker was charged under clause 8 of the section 156 of the Customs Act 1969 and upon establishment of such charge against him a penalty of Rs 2,00,000 was imposed on him.
Counsel for petitioners advocate Faisal Siddiquie submitted that the act involved smuggling of 218 turtles out of which 45 died in custody of wildlife department and the rest were released into the sea. However, he added, the adjudicating officer ignored the above-mentioned facts and had purportedly ordered confiscation of the turtles. He said the trafficker in the facts and circumstances of the case ought to have been prosecuted and charged under clause 8, ibid, which prescribes conviction up to 14 years.
Meanwhile, the court required both sides to forward their arguments as to which clause is applicable to the present case. The hearing was adjourned to January 22.
Earlier, the counsel for the petitioners had submitted that smuggling of turtles and tortoises particularly black spotted turtles, declared vulnerable and endangered species had escalated in the past two years.
Recently, 218 fresh water black spotted turtles, which were being smuggled to Thailand, were confiscated from the Karachi Airport.
Subsequently, the customs authorities arrested the alleged smuggler and handed them over to Sindh wild life department without registering a case against him under the Customs Act 1969.
The Sindh wildlife department registered a case against the accused under the Sindh Wild Life Ordinance 1972 and produced him in court of Malir’s judicial magistrate. However, the alleged smuggler was later released by the court on bail.
He argued that customs authorities had confiscated travelling document of the alleged smuggler under the custom laws but it did not institute proceeding against him which was required under the Custom Act 1969.