Pakistan Railways: ‘Cough up back pay or forget yours’

LAHORE: Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed of the Lahore High Court on Friday warned senior Pakistan Railways (PR) officials that they wouldn’t be paid their salaries if the wages due to its legal advisers were not released by July 14. The court was hearing a petition by at least 60 legal advisers saying they had not been paid for two years. The PR general manager earlier told the court that they were short of funds, but the salaries of some advisors had been released. At this some of the petitioners, present in the courtroom, pointed out that the Rs10 million cheque issued by the department had bounced. This earned the judge’s ire. “If the salaries of the petitioners are not paid by the next hearing, Railways officers should be ready to forget their salaries too,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 9^th, 2011.