The Peshawar High Court restrained the provincial government from winding up the Provincial Public Health Initiative (PPHI) and issued a notice seeking its reply.
PHOTO: PPI
The bench, headed by Justice Nisar Hussain, was hearing a writ petition filed by Shaukat Ahmad and 212 employees of PPHI, while the second petition was filed on behalf of people of the province. The petitioners’ counsel Sahibzada Asadullah said his clients were appointed in different cadres under PPHI.
He said PPHI was an institution that served public interest and providing better health care facilities to rural areas and should not be wound up. He added PPHI was a project that was supposed to continue till 2018, but the provincial government, through a notification, decided to end it by June 30, 2016
He informed the bench that the government assigned a third party to review the performance of PPHI. It was declared in a report that the performance of this entity was far better than any of the government’s health institutions.
He told the court that if the project was wound up, the people would be deprived of their basic constitutional right. He requested the bench to declare the government’s notification null and void. The bench stayed ending the project and sought a reply from the provincial government.
FIA restrained
Another bench, headed by Justice Yahya Afridi, restrained Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) from arresting, harassing and raiding offices of Pakistan Overseas Employment Promoters Association (POEPA) and sought a reply from the investigative authority.
The bench was hearing a writ petition filed by Shahjehan, a representative of POEPA, through his lawyer Nazir Ahmad. The bench was told that POEPA was a licence-holding body whose responsibilities were to find jobs for overseas Pakistanis.
He argued that licences were issued by immigration director general under the immigration ordinance.
Ahmad added overseas employment promoters seek applications for employment abroad after receiving visas from different countries. He said when people submitted their passports, FIA conducted raids on their offices and confiscated them. “FIA keeps all passports in its custody and demands money from the helpless holders who are left with no option but to pay a bribe,” Ahmad said.
He added that FIA had no authority to conduct raids as only the Immigration DG, under Rule 29, sub rule 4 of the Ordinance, was entitled to take such action “The DG will ask the government to initiate an enquiry or conduct a raid against any overseas employment body in case there is any kind of suspicion,” he said.
Comments filed by the attorney general’s office assured the court that FIA would neither raid their offices nor arrest or harass them. He added that the law would be followed.
The bench restrained FIA from overstepping its authority and raiding, arresting or harassing POEPA.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 3rd, 2016.
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