Court orders: PHC stays merger of 102 schools in Mohmand Agency

Same bench gave health dept officials 14 days to regularise services of doctors


Our Correspondent April 22, 2016
Peshawar High Court. PHOTO: PPI

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has stayed the merger of 102 schools into other public sector schools. Notices have been issued to FATA Secretariat additional chief secretary, secretary for law and order, director for education and Mohmand Agency political agent to submit replies to a petition challenging the merger.

The bench comprising Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Musarrat Hilali heard a writ petition filed by Malik Fazal Rabi Safi through his counsel Raza Khan Safi on Friday.

Raza Khan argued that terrorism has ruined the education system with militants targeting a number of public schools in the agency.

He said the political administration decided to merge them into other public schools in different parts of the agency instead of taking steps to increase the number of schools.

According to the counsel, a notification was issued by the political administration on January 16, after which around 102 schools were merged, reducing the number of varsities in the agency even further.

Raza said children in Mohmand Agency were already facing problems and the move was a step back from development and progress given the low literacy rate.

The petitioner’s counsel requested the bench to declare the notification null and void.

The bench stayed the merger of schools and sought replies from all respondents.

Regularisation of doctors

The same bench gave a 14-day deadline to health department secretary and other relevant officials and warned them of contempt of court proceedings if services of the doctors were not regularised.

The bench was hearing a contempt of court petition filed by Dr Asadullah and Dr Rizwan, along with other doctors, through their counsel Advocate Aminur Rahman.

The bench was informed that PHC ordered health department authorities to regularise petitioners’ services on February 4.

Rahman said court orders were yet to be implemented even though several months had passed. He insisted action should be taken against the authorities for the non-implementation of court orders.

The bench ordered the authorities to implement its order within 14 days or bring a stay order from the Supreme Court of Pakistan against its order, otherwise secretary and director general of the health department will need to appear before the court and contempt of court proceeding will be started against them.

NAB restrained

The bench also restrained National Accountability Bureau (NAB) from harassing and raiding the house of a citizen. It sought a reply from NAB Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa director general.

Abdul Sattar Khan, who represented Arshid Hussain Malik, said the petitioner was a resident of Lahore and NAB K-P was conducting raids on his house and harassing his family members without any reason.

He argued NAB had neither issued any call-up notice to appear before it nor informed the petitioner of any crime or violation he may have committed.

After hearing the arguments, the bench accepted the plea and restrained NAB from conducting raids on the petitioner’s house. It also ordered NAB K-P DG to file reply to the petition.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 23rd,  2016.

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