Pakistani court bans nationwide Valentine's Day celebrations

Feb. 13 (UPI) -- A Paskitani high court on Monday banned Valentine's Day celebrations nationwide after approving a petition that the holiday was "against the teachings of Islam."

The Islamabad High Court issued the order to prevent celebrations Tuesday on the petition submitted by a citizen named Abdul Waheed.

The order states the holiday cannot be celebrated in "any public space or government building," prohibits the display of ads on electronic and print media that reference the holiday, and bans the sale of associated merchandise.

The ban has an immediate impact on merchants, including in Islamabad.

Florists usually made about $800 for sales on the holiday -- 10 times on a normal day, CNN reported.

"We spend four to five days making these. I've got 40 of them ready to be sold for tomorrow," Sultan Zaib told CNN.

Mohammad Naveed also told CNN said he had invested close to $2,000 buying blooms for his roadside flower shop.

"If they ban us from selling these tomorrow then it will be a disaster, we simply cannot afford this," said Naveed.

Last year, President Mamnoon Hussain urged Pakistanis not to celebrate the holiday because it has no connection with the country's culture. Only a small minority openly observe the day, mainly in the big cities.

Religious groups, including the Islamic political party Jamaat-e-Islami, have held rallies annually against the celebration.