Secretary finance summoned over newspapers dues

PESHAWAR:

Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court, Justice SM Atiq Shah, on Tuesday voiced strong anger after no representative from the Finance Department appeared in court to address a contempt of court petition regarding the non-payment of outstanding dues to newspapers for government advertisements.

The hearing concerned a contempt petition filed by the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE), Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chapter, through its Chairman Tahir Farooq. The petition was represented by advocates Shahid Naseem Chamkani and Ahsan Masood.

The court was informed that in 2023, a writ petition had been filed seeking payment of approximately Rs1.8 billion owed to newspapers for government advertisements issued over several years.

During those proceedings, the outstanding amount was acknowledged by the authorities, who sought time for reconciliation. On May 22, 2024, the high court directed the K-P government to clear the dues and disposed of the petition accordingly.

Despite the passage of considerable time and the court's explicit orders, the payments remain unpaid, prompting the filing of the contempt petition to initiate proceedings against the relevant officials.

During Tuesday's hearing, the absence of any representative from the Finance Department drew sharp criticism from the chief justice. The bench was told that, in light of recent meetings, the Finance Department had decided to release Rs800 million to newspapers during the current financial year.

However, Justice AtIq Shah expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of compliance and the non-appearance of the secretary finance. He summoned the secretary once again and adjourned the hearing to the next date of appearance, issuing fresh notices to the department.