KARACHI: The Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI) has condemned the action taken against Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Limited, saying that the mills’ legally acquired yard was sealed by Pakistan Railways without any court order or legal justification.
KCCI President M. Shariq Vohra appealed to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and Sindh Governor Imran Ismail to take notice of the incident, emphasizing that it would adversely affect the operations of Gul Ahmed and put thousands of workers’ jobs at stake.
The yard was where the mill kept all its cotton stocks in bulk quantities but it was sealed due to the ongoing anti-encroachment drive. However, it was a legally acquired premise with lease documents that have been vetted by the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) and the Sindh High Court (SHC), he added.
He said it was unfair to stop Gul Ahmed’s management from taking away cotton stocks from the yard when they had assured to abide by whatever the honorable court decides in this matter.
Gul Ahmed was the biggest exporter of textile products and the move to bar the textile mill from accessing its cotton stock would affect its production activities, while exportable consignments may also suffer delays, he added.
“Prompt intervention by the premier and provincial governor in this issue would ensure smooth operations of the factory and save thousands of jobs,” Shariq Vohra reiterated.
The Karachi Chamber fully supports Gul Ahmed’s legitimate demand to allow access to its raw material so that its workers remain at work, export operations continue without any disruption and the shareholders remain confident about the mill’s performance, the KCCI president said.
The Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Limited administration alleged that armed personnel of railway police entered the cotton storage area of the mill on January 3 and occupied it illegally.
As per the press release, issued by the textile giant, railway police baton-charged the factory workers and fired shots in the air to frighten them on January 3 at about 1:30 am (night).
