Only time will tell!

Exactly a year ago, Karachiites were given good news by CM Sindh  regarding timings of wedding events and businesses, however, like most initiatives, this one hasn’t been implemented as yet. You! follows up...

The wedding dinner was almost over when someone remembered that the wedding cake, which was supposed to be cut before the dinner was served, had been completely forgotten! A waiter was hurriedly summoned and sent to fetch the cake. The bride and groom lifted the knife to cut the cake and...the lights went out.

No, no... it wasn't due to the infamous load shedding prevalent in Lahore. It was the 10 o' clock rule that strictly governs the wedding functions in the Punjab province. No wedding event, big or small is exempted from following it.

This happened when Mrs Kamran recently went to Lahore for her son's nikah ceremony. The mother of the bride had informed her that all functions end at 10 p.m. sharp in Lahore, regardless of their venue. Used to Karachi's wedding and other events' timings, Mrs Kamran took it with a pinch of salt. However, in deference to her host, she and her other family members reached the venue at 9 p.m., still too early by Karachi's standard.

"I was sure that we would be the first ones to arrive and that the bridal party would not appear before 10 p.m. To our surprise, we saw that the banquet hall was already full. The agitated parents of the bride started the proceedings immediately. They rushed us through the 'rasms', and as soon as the girl's grandfather presented the ring to my son, the dinner was announced. In this hubbub, we forgot the wedding cake. It just so happened that the bride and groom lifted the knife to cut the cake at the stroke of 10, and the hotel admin promptly shut the power at the designated hour.

"My husband requested the staff to give us 10 minutes, but no entreaties moved them. So, we had to resort to bribing the staff to grant us those precious 10 minutes after 10 o' clock. The cake was served in indecent haste, and the guests had barely gulped it down when the lights went out for the second time. And yes, I am ashamed that we had to resort to bribing, but the cake had to be cut and served, and pictures could not be taken in the dark," shares Mrs Kamran.

"Another thing that I found weird was that although the parents of the girl are very rich, only salad, pulao, karhai and qulfies were served. We later found out that one dish rule in Lahore is strictly implemented. Whether it is the wedding of a millionaire's offspring or a poor man's, the rule has to be obeyed or the father - and in some cases, even the groom - end up staying the night at the expense of the Punjab government. Yes, I mean in jail!" she adds.

In Karachi, weddings are seldom held on time. The invite may read 'Dinner: 9:30pm sharp', but if it is served even at 11:30, people have been heard to comment 'thank God jaldi farigh ho gae' (got done with it early).

Well, it seemed for a while that things would change - for the better, when Syed Murad Ali Shah, chief minister of Sindh, took office last year. He passed three orders effective from November 1, 2016: all wedding functions would end at 10 p.m., only one dish would be served at wedding events and businesses would close at 7 p.m. Common people, in general, were pleased, but these orders did not sit well with influential businessmen and marriage hall owners. Later, in another meeting, it was decided that since the marriage hall owners had already booked venues for three to four months, the implementation would be postponed for three months, i.e. February 2017. Well, this date also has come and gone and the Karachiites are still waiting for the deferred order to be implemented.

In this regard, You! contacted the Chief Minister House to learn about the fate of this directive and spoke to Mr. Abdul Rasheed Channa, Press Secretary and Media Consultant to C.M Murad Ali Shah. "The order for the closure of wedding halls at 10 p.m. has been postponed due to the construction work going on in the city. As you know, work on several major roads is still underway. The chief minister thinks that it will be unfair to people if the order is implemented now. Most people reach home late from work because of the reconstruction work, and they would not be able to attend weddings if the order is implemented before the work is finished. I think that a decision in this regard, will be taken next year. The one-dish rule and business hours will also be reviewed next year," informs Mr. Channa.

Another official from the Sindh government, who did not want to reveal his identity, says that the Chief Minister's words were taken out of context. "He did not say anything about limiting the number of dishes at the wedding feasts. We have attended weddings of both the rich, elite and the poor public. In the weddings of the poor people, the food is usually limited to biryani, or biryani and qorma. So, if people want, they can limit the dishes served at wedding receptions according to their budget," he argues.

The chief minister had ordered for the markets to close by 7 p.m. to conserve energy. He had said that we should adopt good business practices in accordance with world standards.

Explaining his reason behind wanting businesses to close at 7 p.m., Murad Ali Shah had said: "My contention is very simple. Start your work on time and complete it within time!"

But the businessmen did not think it was that 'simple' a contention, and rebelled en masse. So, its implementation, too, was deferred.

You! also got in touch with Mr. Sharfuddin Memon who is the former head of the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee, Sindh, and the security adviser to the government of Sindh to get his view. Sharing his opinion on the matter, Mr. Memon states, "In the past, these things have been tried, but to no avail. Unfortunately, people don't obey orders and don't take the government seriously. For instance, when one dish rule was introduced, people resorted to changing the name of their wedding functions. The rule only targeted the wedding functions i.e. valima and shaadi, so the invitation card would read just 'reception' or 'aqeeqa'. 

"Weddings go on till 2 a.m. here. The timings should definitely be curtailed. I personally feel 11 p.m. would be a better deadline. This would compel people to wind up their functions by 11:30. People might even shift to day time wedding, a practice that is common in interior Sindh. Although rangers have very effectively improved the law and order situation in Karachi, from the safety point of view also, it is still better to head home as early as possible after the event is over.

"I am totally for the one dish rule. This rule is followed in the Punjab, and if the trend is set up here, it would really help the poor and middle classes," asserts Mr Memon.

Commenting on the anonymous source from Sindh Government who said the idea of one dish did not go down well in some circles, Mr Memon says, "Obviously, it was not a popular idea among the rich. Sure, people enjoy serving eight to 10 dishes. They have money and want to show off, but look at the sheer waste! Unfortunately, this competition thing is going on, which is wrong from the religious point of view as well. Islam teaches moderation, and we should follow our religion's injunctions."

About business closure timings, Mr Memon thinks, "We have energy shortage, so reducing business hours may help in conserving energy. As a nation we have to develop this culture of saving energy. But, looking at the weather condition in Karachi, it stands to reason that people prefer shopping in the evening when it is cooler. If you go to the Middle East, you would see the same practice there as well. Closing businesses at 7 p.m. is not reasonable. I think 10 p.m. would be more reasonable and effective."

Whether the CM is able to implement all three of his directives - or even one - only time will tell. We wish him luck!