SC explores link between accountability, fundamental rights

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial observed on Wednesday that the process of accountability under Indian law was linked to fundamental human rights, adding that the jurisprudence treated rule of law as one of the categories of rights. The chief justice asked whether NAB will refer to the Indian law related to the amendments. The CJP observed this while heading a three-judge bench that had taken up a challenge filed by former prime minister Imran Khan against the August 2022 amendments to the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO). The PTI counsels in the case have been mounting the argument that the tweaks in the accountability laws paved the way to allow people to get scot-free in corruption cases and thus, adversely impact fundamental human rights. During the course of proceedings on Wednesday, the CJP while addressing the lawyer representing the government, Makhdoom Ali Khan, put the question of whether the latter would refer to the Indian law regarding NAB amendments. He noted that the process of accountability had been linked to fundamental human rights in Indian law, adding that the rule of law also fell under the category of fundamental human rights in India. Justice Mansoor Ali Shah also asked whether the Indian accountability system operated under a law identical to the one pursued by NAB and further asked whether there were ‘NAB-like’ laws elsewhere in South Asia. “If the NAB law was good, to which extent did it benefit the country? Has any independent body formulated a report detailing the fruits of the NAB Act?” he continued asking. In response, Makhdoom Ali Khan told the bench he would be able to answer all the questions after doing thorough research on the matter. The CJP asked if anyone could be exempted from punishment and whether the severity of the crime could be reduced. Makhdoom Ali Khan pointed out that PTI chief Imran Khan had not himself amended the NAB law, he also happened to be the author of a part of the NAB amendments challenged in the petition. “There is no precedent for a person to make the amendments in the first place and then later challenge those very tweaks,” he said and recalled that Imran Khan had not participated in the debate and vote when the parliament steered the amendments into the law. “Imran amended the law twice in 2019, thrice in 2021 and once in 2022,” he added. The federal government’s counsel also called into question the PTI chief’s challenge to NAB amendments under Article 184-3 of public interest. “If there was public interest then why Imran did not present any bill in parliament on NAB amendments,” he asked. He said that Imran Khan had stated that the effect of crimes had been eliminated by NAB amendments. Subsequently, further hearing of the case was adjourned till Thursday (today).

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LHC bans tree felling at schools, colleges

Lahore High Court’s Justice Shahid Karim banned tree cutting in educational institutions observing that the cases pertaining to the same complaints be sent to the Anti-Corruption. The court was hearing different petitions about how smog could be controlled, society could be made pollution-free and groundwater could be protected from wastage. As the proceedings commenced, the environmental commission’s report was submitted wherein the court was ensured that all appropriate measures are being taken to control smog. On a point the court was told that in collaboration of other departments all possible steps are also being taken against encroachments as well as to maintain the flow of traffic. Upon the request made by Advocate General Punjab (AGP) Shan Gull to grant them permission of transfers of DG LDA, DG PHA, and CTO Lahore, the court accepting the request allowed transfers of DG PHA and Lahore CTO. However, the court retrained the government from transferring DG LDA and secretary specialised health intimated the AGP Shan Gull that the government be conveyed the court’s clear order. During proceedings the court questioned why the government wanted transfer of the DG LDA, he knows from where the pressure is being built, Justice Karim remarked. The court made clear that the government should produce the material before the court whatever it claims to have. However, Justice Karim made clear that this is the court’s order and the government should avoid intervening into the court’s matters. Justice Karim also directed the concerned quarters to display the emergency helpline numbers for prompt response if someone complaints about traffic jam. Published in The Express Tribune, February 23rd, 2023.

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Governor suspends LG Act 2022

Punjab Governor Muhammad Balighur Rehman suspended the Local Government Act 2022 that was approved by the former chief minister Pervaiz Elahi. After the approval of the governor, Local Government and Community Development Secretary Ahmed Raza Sarwar issued a regular gazette notification on Wednesday evening, which will come into effect immediately. The move has abolished eleven metropolitan corporations and 40 district councils across Punjab, while 185 municipal committees and 35 district councils were restored in their place. A total of 252 local bodies from 2013 were restored. According to this notification, the only Metropolitan Corporation in Punjab will be that of Lahore, thus there will no longer be a District Council in the provincial capital. The Metropolitan Corporation status of Gujarat, Sialkot was also abolished, while Municipal Corporations and District Councils were also abolished in the four new districts of Murree, Talagang, Kot Addu and Taunsa. In November, 2022 on the instructions of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the Punjab local government secretary has sent a letter to the deputy commissioners of all districts for fresh delimitation of constituencies. Carrying out the delimitation three times because of frequent legislation has cost the exchequer a large amount of money. After deliberations between the provincial election commissioner and the Punjab government, it was decided that new constituencies should be demarcated as per the Local Government Act of 2022. Published in The Express Tribune, February 23rd, 2023.

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Imran promises ruthless accountability on return to power

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan castigated Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday for destroying the economy and asked the rulers to bring back the country’s “looted money” stashed abroad. Addressing supporters via a video link, Imran vowed to hold the incumbent rulers accountable. “In the past, these rulers escaped the law but in the future they would face the consequences for violating the Constitution and fundamental rights,” he said. The PTI chief said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was asking people to give sacrifices, but instead he himself should give sacrifice by bringing “your looted money back from abroad”. Imran criticised the prime minister’s post-cabinet meeting press conference saying that Shehbaz was preparing the nation to get ready for inflation after an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). “I thought there would be a big decision, they must be worried about the nation,” he said, advising the government to stop fooling the people by sharing plans to cut down the number of government vehicles and selling land. He warned that "the economic situation would not improve by the government’s cosmetic measures, because during this government’s tenure, Pakistan faced inflation three times higher than the tenure of his government". Also read: PM announces sweeping austerity measures; ministers to pay own bills, forego salaries “The coalition government claimed to fix the economy within 10 months, but they have actually destroyed it. Even the enemy could not have done what has happened in the country in the last 10 months,” he added. The PTI chief held the current rulers and their ‘facilitators’ responsible for all the wrongdoings in the country. “After coming to power, they had only one objective that is to quash their corruption cases,” he added. Speaking about the election in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), Imran urged the masses to come out and defend the Constitution if the election would not be held in 90 days of the dissolution of the assemblies. “If polls are delayed after 90 days, then the nation will have to step outside to defend the Constitution. Our goal is to ensure implementation of the rule of law and the Constitution in the country, not the law of jungle,” he added. He warned that the caretaker government could not exist after 90 days. While criticising Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja for not issuing the election schedule, he maintained that Article 6 [treason] should be applied to him. At the same time, the PTI chief paid tributes to his party workers and supporters for participating in the party’s ‘Jail Bharo’ [court arrest] movement, which kicked-off earlier on Wednesday. He averred that the nation had become fearless after the launch of the movement. “It is initiated to break the shackles of fear and the nation is now ready for a revolution,” he said. He praised the people of Lahore and the PTI senior leadership for courting arrest. Imran also thanked the people for being there when he appeared before the Lahore High Court (LHC) two days ago, seeking protective bail in the case pertaining to protests outside offices of the Pakistan Election Commission (ECP).   https://ift.tt/urAitXM  

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CM reviews spring festival preparations

Caretaker Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi organised a meeting at his office on Tuesday to review arrangements for the upcoming Jashan-e-Baharan festival. The meeting was attended by provincial ministers, ACS, secretaries of the local government, housing, higher education, school education, information and tourism departments, commissioner and deputy commissioner Lahore, DG local government, DG PHA, DGPR, CEO Lahore Waste Management Company and other senior officers. The CM emphasized the necessity of top-notch arrangements for the upcoming spring festival, which would be held in various cities of Punjab, including Lahore. He announced that the city's marathon race, which had not been held for a long time, would be organized and made a permanent feature of the festival.   Published in The Express Tribune, February 22nd, 2023.

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SC questions customs operating within cities

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has questioned the legal authority of customs officials operating within the country, observing that their focus is on seizing personal belongings of citizens instead of preventing smuggling at border crossings. The three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, and comprising Justice Ayesha Malik, and Justice Athar Minallah, heard a case on customs authority, prompting inquiries into the lawfulness of officials' actions in city operations, market raids, and checkpoint setups. The court stressed the need for a clear understanding of customs officers’ powers and jurisdiction to prevent the illegal trade of goods, including smuggled dollars, wheat, and fertilizers to Afghanistan. Justice Ayesha noted that instead of stopping smuggling, the customs officials paid more attention to individual actions. She added that the attention of the customs officials was diverted towards apprehending the citizens' vehicles and other belongings, rather than where these items were smuggled from. She asked what law authorised the customs officials to conduct raids at markets and set up checkpoints. She continued that the main question was about the powers and jurisdiction of the customs officers. Justice Minallah asked the customs officials whether the smuggling law applicable to an item caught in the city. He added that the Customs officials were not responding to the court’s queries properly and they needed to be more prepared. Justice Ayesha observed that the Customs officials operated in the cities every day, far from the borders. CJP Bandial inquired whether the seizure of goods on the highway near Multan would be smuggling or a matter related to customs duty. “Is it correct for the customs authorities to stop citizens inside the city and ask for documents?” he asked. He recommended that the customs officials should facilitate the economy besides seizing smuggled goods. The court later adjourned the hearing for two weeks, giving time to the customs authorities to prepare for the case. It was revealed in a meeting held in December last year that the government had failed to stop the smuggling of the dollars to Afghanistan that was underway using orange crates and with the connivance of law enforcement agencies. It also emerged during the meeting that the Customs Act was not in conformity with the new limits set for outbound currency flow, hampering the registration of criminal cases against the smugglers. The participants of the huddle expressed their concerns over the smuggling of dollars, imported wheat and fertiliser to Afghanistan. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar emphasised the relevant authorities to devise a robust and proactive roadmap to curb the cross-border smuggling of various items in order to bring economic and financial stability to the country.

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PTI seeks consultation on new NAB chief

PTI Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry has said that a new leader of the opposition in the National Assembly from his party should be notified before the selection of new chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). Fawad insisted that since the Lahore High Court (LHC) has suspended the notification of PTI lawmakers, the opposition leader in NA should be picked from the party. Thus, he demanded, a head of the anti-graft body should be appointed only after proper consultation with the opposition leader. The former federal minister noted that the current leader of the opposition, Raja Riaz – a disgruntled PTI legislator – lacked the credentials for the process as “everyone knows he was a turncoat”. If the NAB chief is appointed with the consultation of Riaz, it would be unacceptable, he added. He went on to stress that the PTI would approach the courts if a PTI parliamentarian was consulted on the matter and claimed that NAB Chairman Aftab Sultan resigned from his post due to “pressure to lodge fake cases” against the government’s opponents. He claimed that an organised campaign has been launched against the judges. “The PML-N has started a campaign against five judges involved in the Panama case,” he alleged and said that the Supreme Court of Pakistan should take notice of this. The PTI wants to strengthen the judicial system in the country, he added. He disclosed that the PTI has decided that when whenever the court calls them, they would appear before the courts. “I do not understand why the judges thought calling Imran to the court was necessary. However, out of respect for the judiciary, the former premier appeared for the hearing,” he added. However, he castigated the authorities for not making arrangements for the PTI chief’s visit to the LHC. “The high court made history on the occasion of PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s appearance before the bench. The people of Lahore showered their love [on Imran].” Commenting on PTI’s ‘jail bharo’ (volunteer arrest) movement, he said it kick off on Wednesday (today), adding it would be on peaceful protests. He expressed thanks to the government for imposing Section 144 (on the few roads of the city) and added that tomorrow thousands of people would stage a protest on Mall Road. “Our only demand is snap polls,” he added. On this occasion, PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry said the movement was the next political plan of the PTI, adding that about 200 leaders and workers would surrender themselves before the authority. “This movement was also a protest against inflation and the arrests would be made in other cities after Lahore,” he added. PTI writes to NA speaker On the other hand, in a related development, PTI wrote a letter to National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf seeking to regain the key position in the wake of the NAB head’s resignation. PTI Chief Whip in National Assembly Malik Aamir Dogar submitted the letter to the National Assembly Secretariat on the instruction of PTI Chairman Imran Khan. Citing the verdict of the LHC, the letter stated that the largest opposition party in the national legislature was PTI. Hence, the opposition leader must be from the same party. The letter added that according to the NAB law; the appointment of a new chairman also has to be carried out after consultation between the leader of the house and the leader of the opposition. Therefore, the replacement of NAB's former chairman Aftab Sultan must be finalised after consultation with the new opposition leader nominated by PTI.

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