LAHORE - Model Town inquiry report case, deportation of Turkish citizens, alleged mismanagement at public sector companies and MDCAT paper leak remained prominent cases at the Lahore High Court last week.
The Punjab government defended issuance of the Model Town inquiry report on the one hand and confessed to leak of paper of the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) on social media on the other.
A full bench headed by Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh has been hearing Punjab government’s appeal against the decision of a single bench consisting of Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi about making the Model Town inquiry report public and handing it over to the legal heirs of the deceased and injured in the Model Town incident.
Advocate Khwaja Haris, a private counsel for the Punjab government, told the full bench that ‘heirs’ of those killed and injured in the Model Town incident and their lawyers misled the single bench to get a favourable order for release of Justice Najafi’s report. He said the petitioners before the single bench had not approached the court with clean hands. Questioning the procedure adopted by the single judge to decide the petition by individuals, the counsel submitted that the provincial government was not given an opportunity to file a written reply, especially on the point whether the inquiry report was a judicial document.
He also contended that different single benches had referred three different petitions on the subject to a full bench already seized with the similar matter before the impugned judgement of the single bench. He alleged that in the instant case the lawyers of the petitioners had committed a fraud by telling the single bench that the matter pending before the full bench was entirely different.
Justice was not seen to be done while passing the impugned verdict for the release of Justice Najafi’s report, Khwaja Haris said, adding that the impugned judgement was a classic case of misdirection in law, unreasonable and omitted to take into consideration settled laws.
Arguments of the government’s counsel were in progress when the full bench headed by Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh adjourned the hearing till Oct 10 (tomorrow). Khwaja Harris has yet to start his arguments on the merits of the impugned judgement as he has been highlighting procedural flaws committed by the single bench while taking up and deciding the petition that demanded release of the inquiry report withheld by the government.
Public sector companies, including Punjab Saaf Pani Company, have also been taken to court. This case is being described as “another panama” as billions of rupees were being allocated for them every year. At the last hearing, the LHC censured the Punjab government for not presenting details of public sector companies. The matter came to limelight when a lawyer moved a petition to the Lahore High Court against the alleged corruption in Punjab Saaf Pani Company (PSPC). The court of Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi heard the matter. The judge had directed the government to submit details of all public sector firms functioning throughout the province but the government failed to submit reports. On this, Justice Naqvi observed that advocate general’s office had not been complying with the court orders. He also observed that the chief minister would be summoned if details are not submitted at the next hearing.
PSPC CEO Nabeel Javed was present in the courtroom but the government lawyer did not present the data of even that company. The judge asked a number of questions to the law officer handling the companies’ case. He asked whether the institution was being destroyed by illegal appointments, why are details not being provided and that is it East India Company? The judge asked the law officer, “Why are CEOs of these companies being paid millions of rupees as salary and why there is no one who can raise a question?
Ordering the government to come up with details of all public sector companies functioning in Punjab, the court adjourned the hearing for two weeks.
Sania Kanwal, the lawyer petitioner, had alleged that billions of rupees from national exchequer were being spent on foreign tours of Punjab Saaf Pani Company officials. She alleged that officials were purchasing expensive bulletproof cars from the funds allocated for provision of potable water to the public.
The other big case was related to Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test paper, which was leaked on the social media. Surprisingly, the Punjab government admitted before the LHC that MDCAT would be held afresh during the last week of current month as reports about leak of an earlier paper had proved true.
Special Secretary for Health Sajid Chohan appeared before the court with the report on the issue and informed the court that evidence of paper leak was found during inquiries. He said that vice chancellor of the University of Health Sciences (UHS) had been sacked while an FIR had been registered against those involved in the paper leak with some arrests.
He said the government had decided to conduct the test again during the last week of October without receiving any fee from the students.
In light of the government’s version, Justice Shahid Waheed disposed of several petitions moved by students who appeared in the MDCAT on Aug 20 for admission to MBBS.
Thousands of students of medical education were affected by the mismanagement of the authorities concerned. However, in another similar case, the LHC directed the Higher Education Commission (HEC) to certify transcripts/degrees of medical students issued to them by Fatima Jinnah Medical University (FJMU) within two weeks.
Khadijatul Kubra and hundreds of other students had moved the court. They said they passed their MBBS from Fatima Jinnah Medical College (FJMC) but the HEC refused to certify their degrees as the FJMC was not a constituent college of the FJMU. They completed their MBBS and were duly issued degrees. However, they said, they had not been allowed to do house job since the HEC was not ready to certify their degrees. The petitioners said their career was at stake due to commission’s act. They asked the court to order the HEC to verify their degrees enabling them to start house job.
During the hearing, a law officer told the court that the Punjab government had issued a notification declaring the FJMC to be the constituent college of the FJMU. He said a similar notification from the federal government would also be issued soon. The officer further stated that degrees of the petitioners would be certified by the HEC as per an undertaking given by the commission’s counsel. Justice Shams Mahmood Mirza disposed of the petition, directing the HEC to certify the degrees of the students within two weeks.
Also, the LHC extended stay granted earlier to Turkish citizens allegedly being deported by the state authorities. Murat Ervan filed a writ petition pleading that his colleagues had been allegedly abducted by law enforcement agencies and are likely to be extradited forcibly.
Also, Chief Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah put off until October 19 the hearing of a plea against demolition of 136 years old building of railway station of Gujranwala. The CJ sought details of all railway stations constructed before creation of Pakistan. A social worker, Imrana Tiwana, moved the petition challenging the proposed demolition of the Gujranwala railway station building. The station building was constructed in 1881 and it was a heritage asset, the petitioner said, arguing that Pakistan railways authorities decided to demolish this historic building to construct a commercial building. She prayed to the court to issue directions to railway authorities to preserve and make functional the historical Gujranwala railway station building.
At the end of the week, increasing rates of “tomatoes” were challenged in the Lahore High Court. The Judicial Activism Panel moved the petition, stating that the Punjab government had badly failed to regulate the prices of daily use commodities. It prayed to the court to order the government to nab the hoarders, control prices and take action against those involved in the unlawful business.