Rest house staff faces action in Pakistan for using judges crockery
Four employees of a rest house in Pakistan are facing punitive action for eating in the crockery designated for ‘honourable judges, sparking a debate over class divide and discriminatory practices in the country.
The Lahore High Court had ordered a probe into the use of “forbidden" crockery meant for judges of the superior court against four suspects — Samuel Sandhu (waiter), Faisal Hayat (coolie), Shahzad Masih (sweeper) and Muhammad Imran (counter staff).
Two of the accused were Christians.
During a probe conducted by the LHC Additional Registrar, the staffers in question were found using crockery while having lunch in the Judges Rest House," a court official said, adding that the accused have denied any wrongdoing.
The official said the probe body on Friday recommended that Christian waiter Samuel should be removed from service while the other three be issued “censure” letters.
As the inquiry focuses on administrative discipline, this case has sparked legal and ethical debate on social media.
One netizen named Samrina Hashmi on her X account criticised the move and asked, “Are these judges royal that none else could eat in their crockery…are these accused employees animals?
“Eating food has become a crime. Those who feast on the nation’s wealth took notice of the staff’s ‘crime" of eating from the plates bought with the staff’s own earnings," another social media user posted on X.
Another person named Ali Hasan lambasted the LHC for treating a Christian staffer differently.
“If all accused committed the same basic act of violating crockery use rules, and only one belonging to a religious minority is singled out for removal, it could be viewed as discriminatory. The inquiry must ensure procedural fairness,” he demanded.
World