SC sets aside IHC ruling of nullifying ban on motorcycles on motorways.

ISLAMABAD -- The Supreme Court has held that the superior courts should not adopt such an interpretation that renders a statute or any of its provisions inoperative or unworkable, stressing that the principle of equality or egalitarianism did not mean that every law must have a universal application to all persons.

The apex court set aside an Islamabad High Court (IHC) ruling that had nullified the National Highways and Motorway Police (NH and MP) ban on motorcycles on the motorways. A three-judge bench, led by Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, had heard the petition filed by Additional Attorney General Amir Rehman.

In its nine-page judgement, authored by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, the bench noted that it was a well acknowledged and long-standing precept that persons might be classified into groups and such groups might be treated differently if there was a reasonable basis for such difference.

'No doubt, the court can strike down a law if it is found to be unconstitutional, but it cannot...