Floodwater diversions, breaches: SC forming four-member commission for probe
The court observed that it would finalise the names of these experts in chamber after consulting them. It has, however, so far proposed the names of the former chairman of the Water and Power Development Authority Shamsul Mulk from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, the former chief secretary Khawaja Zaheeruddin from the Punjab, AK Lodhi from Sindh and Fateh Khan from Balochistan.
A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Ghulam Rabbani and Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday, was hearing a suo motu notice, taken on the letters of renowned lawyer Fakhruddin G Ebrahim, the Senate’s deputy chairman Jan Muhammad Khan Jamali, Dr Asad Leghari, Muhammad Rahim Baloch and advocate Zahida Thebo. During the course of proceedings, all provinces except the Punjab submitted their reports about the unauthorised diversion of floodwaters in the recent flooding.
After the disclosure of the proposed names, Sindh Advocate General Yousuf Laghari objected to the nomination of Shamsul Mulk and argued that the Sindh government would not accept his presence in the proposed commission. The CJP observed that the court has the authority to appoint anyone to the commission and it was not bound to accept anyone’s objections. The court was also informed that the federal government has also proposed a commission comprising retired judges of the superior courts therefore there was no need to form another commission.
Earlier, petitioner Pakistan Muslim League-Q MNA Marvi Memon rejected the report of a Sindh government-appointed judicial commission because it had not held anyone responsible for the allegedly unauthorised diversion of floodwaters in the province. She pleaded that she should be provided a copy of the judicial commission’s report. The court directed Sindh Advocate General Yousuf Laghari to do so.
Balochistan Advocate General Salahuddin Mengal appraised the court that his province’s government had not been paid any of the international financial assistance. Balochistan had been badly affected by the flood yet its people were not helped. The chief justice asked him to contact the federal government.
The court adjourned the hearing till December 14.
13 officials suspended
Meanwhile in Karachi, 13 irrigation officials, including two executive engineers, were suspended on Thursday in light of the findings of the judicial commission into the Tori and MS bund breaches during the summer floods.
Paperwork on the transfer of the chief engineer of the Guddu Barrage, Zafarullah Mahar, has been sent to the chief minister as well.
According to sources in the Sindh government, the officials who have been suspended include Muhammad Rafique Qureshi (executive engineer), Nabi Dino Wasan (engineer), Shahabuddin Bhatti (assistant engineer), Abdul Razzaq Shahani (assistant engineer) and Fiaz Muhammad (sub-engineer). The other employees are beldars and daroghas.
The suspension orders came from the administrative officer for the chief engineer of the Guddu Barrage. They have been asked to report to the superintendent engineer of the Beghari Canal.
This action has been taken on the orders of the chief minister, who said at a press conference on Wednesday that until a second inquiry commission submits its findings into the disaster, these irrigation officials will be taken off the job. The commission, made up of two retired judges, came to the conclusion that the breaches were not man-made but that irrigation officials had not done their jobs properly when it came to tending the embankments and repairing them.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 10th, 2010.
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