The Lahore High Court (LHC) has declared the business of the snooker club lawful and legal.

According to details surfaced on Thursday, operating a snooker club is a legal and recreational activity. No law imposes a ban on it, the court ruled. The court annulled the trial court’s order to close the snooker club. Justice Jawad Zafar issued the written judgment on the appeal of citizen Muhammad Rashid.

According to the constitution, every citizen has the right to conduct legal business, the court held. Billiards and snooker are neither immoral nor prohibited under the law, the judgment stated.

A business cannot be closed indefinitely on vague complaints, the court ruled. The petitioner stated that he operated a snooker club in Sargodha, the judgment added.

Imposing a complete ban on the business amounts to misuse of judicial powers, the LHC said.

Noise or operating hours could have been regulated; a complete closure was not necessary, the judgment added.

The snooker club provided the public with recreational opportunities to play billiards, the LHC stated. The opponent had petitioned the local magistrate to close the petitioner’s snooker club, the judgment recalled.

The petition claimed that the club remained open late at night and caused noise, the LHC noted. The magistrate ordered the closure of the snooker club under Section 133 of the CRPC, the judgment stated.

The snooker club does not fall under the jurisdiction of Section 133 of the CRPC, the LHC held.

The powers under Section 133 can only be exercised in cases of emergency or temporary public disturbance, the judgment clarified. Orders under Section 133 must be limited and specific, so as not to affect anyone’s economic rights, the LHC said.

The trial court did not correctly interpret the law, the judgment said. The court declares the trial court’s order to close the snooker club null and void, the judgment concluded. The petitioner may reopen the snooker club while fully complying with all applicable laws, the court held.