Eleven LHC judges to get interest-free loans

LAHORE:

The Punjab caretaker government has approved interest-free loans totalling Rs360 million for eleven judges of the Lahore High Court (LHC), including one of the justices who issued a stay order against a government decision regarding sugar mills.

The Punjab Cabinet's Standing Committee on Finance recently granted approval for these loans, which the judges sought to use for constructing residences or purchasing properties.

Read also: Major reshuffle in Punjab judiciary

These interest-free loans will be repaid by the judges over a twelve-year period, with each judge receiving approximately Rs30 million, equivalent to 36 times their basic monthly salary of Rs912,862.

The judges set to receive these loans are Justice Rasaal Hasan Syed, Justice Shakeel Ahmed, Justice Muhammad Tariq Nadeem, Justice Muhammad Amjad Rafiq, Justice Abid Hussian Chattha, Justice Anwaar Hussain, Justice Ali Zia Bajwa, Justice Muhammad Raza Qureshi, Justice Raheel Kamran, Justice Ahmed Nadeem Arshad, and Justice Safdar Saleem Shahid. It is worth noting that there has not been any previous instance of government officials receiving interest-free loans.