Jahangir Tareen offers to buy sugarcane harvested for halted sugar mills

ISLAMABAD - Former Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) secretary general Jahangir Tareen assured the Supreme Court (SC) that he was willing to buy harvested sugarcane from all farmers affected by the suspension of sugar mills.

Jahangir along with five other mill owners extended the offer before a three-member bench of the top court headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar currently hearing a petition against a Lahore High Court (LHC) order to relocate three sugar mills that are reportedly owned by the Sharif family.

In the petition, filed last year, farmers and mill owners had urged the court to scrap the LHC's decision arguing that the halting of crushing had affected cane growers since they were unable to sell their harvest.

On Wednesday, the apex court had given Tareen — a defendant in the case — two options: either the cane be processed after a commission is paid to crushers, or that the entire produce is bought by Tareen.

https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/headline/lhc-orders-sealing-of-two-sharif-owned-sugar-mills/

During today's hearing, Tareen and five other mill owners assured the court that they will buy the entire produce on government rates to which the CJP warned that the transactions would be monitored closely by the court.

After Tareen's offer, the affected farmers raised some objections, saying that the businessmen had not specified how they will buy the cane.

Dismissing the objections raised by the farmers, Justice Nisar cautioned them against becoming someone else's "mouthpiece".

"We (the court) gave relief to the cane growers and stopped sugar mills from illegal operations as well," the CJP remarked and clarified that he would listen to cane growers' arguments only when he was sure of their sincerity.

On the other hand, the counsel for Tareen and others, Aitzaz Ahsan assured that the rate of the cane would be determined by the sugar cane commissioner.

https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/pakistan/lhc-rejects-plea-by-sharif-familys-sugar-mills-regarding-use-of-raw-material/

The hearing was adjourned until April 18. The CJP said that he will listen to further objections in his chamber.