LHC issues notice to federal government over decision to close utility stores

Petitioner claims utility store is profitable and nationwide shutdown is on IMF's directives.

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court has issued notices to the federal government, the Secretary of the Cabinet Division, the Secretary of the Ministry of Law, and the Managing Director of Utility Stores as Justice Muhammad Raza Qureshi heard a petition against the decision to shut down utility stores across the country.

The petitioner argued that he has been an employee of the utility stores for 10 years.

He claimed that the utility store is a profitable organisation, paying 25 billion rupees in taxes annually.

The net profit of the utility stores is 2 billion rupees, while the organisation bears billions in expenses and salaries.

According to the petitioner, the closure of utility stores is being carried out based on IMF directives.

The closure would result in the unemployment of 11,000 individuals.

The Companies Act 2017, sections 293 to 426, outlines the procedure for closing a company.

Any company can be closed by court order or board of directors' instructions. The board of directors has declared utility stores as a profitable entity.

The petitioner requested the court to annul the notification issued by the Cabinet Division on August 7, 2024, and the minutes of the Cabinet Division meeting held on August 9.