NA panel approves bill to bring Fata under SC, PHC

Govt proposal of IHC role rejected

ISLAMABAD: Disagreeing with the government’s proposal, a committee of the National Assembly on Monday passed a bill for extending the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court (SC) and the Peshawar High Court (PHC) to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata).

The Supreme Court and High Court (extension of jurisdiction to Fata) Bill, 2017, moved by the government had envisaged the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) jurisdiction over the region instead of the PHC’s.

But strong opposition from members of the committee, including those from Fata, forced the law minister to agree on the PHC.

“The Fata Reforms Committee, and then the federal cabinet also, clearly endorsed PHC’s jurisdiction. Then why the government is again opting for extension of the IHC’s domain,” said Shahabuddin Khan, a lawmaker from the treasury benches who has been at the forefront for pressing the government to implement Fata reforms. He said IHC jurisdiction over Fata was strategically and financially not viable.



Another lawmaker from Fata, Shah Jee Gul Afridi, said opting for the IHC would be disappointing and unwise. “So after (Fata’s) merger all the files and cases will be moved to PHC (from IHC),” Afridi pointed out about the scenario when the implementation of reforms for the region’s mainstreaming would be completed.

He said the PHC had benches in five areas of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa that were near Fata and the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas, so the provincial high court should cater to the region.

Ali Muhammad Khan of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) said that being a lawyer, he could foresee how the legal eagles could fleece the people of Fata in Islamabad.

“A tribesman coming all the way from a remote area of the tribal region will come and stay in the capital, besides paying millions of rupees to lawyers,” he said, adding that approaching the court in Peshawar would cost him less because most of the people had relatives or near-ones living there.

Law Minister Zahid Hamid said he would not oppose the decision if the majority of the committee agreed over the PHC’s jurisdiction. “The rationale behind IHC is that till the merger it will remain under the ambit of the federal entity and after the merger it will automatically go to the PHC,” he clarified.

Interestingly, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had assured the Fata lawmakers and tribes through a group of their representatives on October 9 that the demand for the PHC’s jurisdiction would be accepted.

Maulana Muhammad Sherani of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), SA Iqbal Quadri of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Rana Muhammad Afzal of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) opposed the bill.



Afzal supported the minister’s point of view, while the MQM member said he wanted Fata to be a separate province. The JUI-F is a staunch critic of the Fata merger plan.

The minister requested the members to defer the matter because he needed to consult the coalition members but the majority of the committee’s members said they had given their consent.

At the end, the minister gave in and the bill was passed with majority. Now it will go to the National Assembly.

The panel also approved the 26th Constitution Amendment Bill for delegating powers to ministers or subordinate officers to act on behalf of the government. It deliberated over the amendment for over an hour and passed the draft with notes of dissent by members for the MQM, the Jamaat-e-Islami and the PTI.