Unnecessary delay: PHC seeks house allotment records of govt officials

Petitioner’s application for a residence has been pending for five years.

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Monday directed the provincial government to produce the complete records of houses allotted to government officials in the city.

The bench comprising Justice Roohul Amin Khan and Justice Syed Afsar Shah issued the orders while hearing a petition filed by a high court stenographer awaiting the allotment of a government house.

Petitioner Altaf Hussain’s counsel Asif Ali said his client is a BPS-19 officer and entitled to residence provided by the government. Ali said Hussain’s application has been pending for five years even as other government employees are facilitated within months.

The counsel said the relevant department should be questioned over the unnecessary delay.



Presenting his argument, Assistant Advocate General Syed Sikandar Shah told the court the application is in process and administrative procedures take time. Justice Amin remarked the court would like to see how the procedure works and how many officials have been allocated houses.

The court then adjourned the hearing till Thursday, directing the government to furnish the record by the next hearing.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 21^st, 2015.