The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday issued summons for Defence Housing Authority (DHA) representatives to appear in court for the next hearing of a case pertaining to Bahria Town's land allotment practices.

Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, who is heading the bench hearing the case, ordered that representatives of DHA be present in court for the next hearing after the lawyer representing Bahria Town insisted that providing buyers with an allotment letter instead of a sale deed is a practice that all housing societies have in common.

"All housing societies do the same. DHA also follows the same practice," Bahria's lawyer argued.

"Whatever [rule] is applied to you will also be applied to DHA," the top judge made clear, noting that the latter is a "strong company".

"If it is to be said [in their case] that issuing allotment letters is wrong and proper registration should be done, then the rule shall apply to all [housing societies]," the apex judge said.

Earlier, Justice Nisar said that billions of rupees were owed to the government under the head of transfer fees. "You provide an allotment letter [to buyers] instead of a sale deed. You do not pay transfer fees and capital value tax," he noted.

"According to your calculation, to date Rs14 billion are due [to the government]," the chief justice said while adding that Bahria Town's forensic audit should be done.

The lawyer for Bahria Town responded by saying that the policy surrounding sale deeds is not crystal clear on the matter.

However, the chief justice rubbished the argument, stating: "Land cannot be transferred without a sale deed. Whatever has been done to date is illegal."

"The payment of the complete fee for land registration is your responsibility," he added.

To this, the defence lawyer said that DHA and all other housing societies also employe the same practices, prompting Justice Nisar to summon DHA to the next hearing of the case, which will be held on December 13.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Usman Dar on Thursday claimed that he has handed over to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) the evidence of alleged money laundering by former foreign minister Khawaja Asif.

Dar, during a chat with media representatives, said that he has transferred to the corruption watchdog the records of the PML-N leader's foreign investments, including his and his wife's benami transactions in foreign accounts.

Furthermore, the evidence of Asif's secret employment with a foreign company and remuneration contract were handed over to the NAB, he added.

"Khawaja Asif caused irreplaceable damage to the national exchequer as the federal minister for water and power," he said.

Dar, the Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Youth Affairs, claimed that "money was laundered under the garb of an Iqama (resident permit) and employment in a foreign company".

"The proof provided to NAB is enough to expose Khawaja Asif's reality," he said. "I will keep cooperating with NAB officials in the investigation."

Allegations against Asif

In March, the accountability bureau, on a complaint filed by Dar, had launched a probe into allegations of money laundering against his Asif — his fellow Sialkot politician.

In September, the Lahore High Court had issued a notice to Asif while hearing a petition filed by Dar, challenging his victory in Sialkot's NA-73 constituency in the July 25 general election.

The court asked Asif to submit his reply to the petition in which Dar had argued that the PML-N leader did not submit a verified affidavit while submitting his nomination papers. The petitioner had also claimed that Asif lied about his asset details in the nomination papers.

In June, the Supreme Court had overturned an April decision of the Islamabad High Court which had disqualified Asif as a member of the parliament for life under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution for not disclosing his employment in a UAE-based company as an occupation as well as the monthly salary he was receiving.

It was PTI's Dar who had moved the high court against Asif in 2017.

The Lahore High Court on Thursday rejected a mother's petition for staying the execution of her "schizophrenic" son Khizar Hayat, noting that the condemned was "convicted by the country's biggest court".

Hayat, a former police constable, was convicted in October 2001 for killing a fellow policeman, while a trial court had handed him a death sentence two years later.

The death row inmate's mother had moved the court, requesting it to delay the death sentence and admit him to a hospital for treatment.

Take a look: Schizophrenic and on death row: the tragic case of ex-cop Khizar Hayat

During the hearing today, a two-member LHC bench comprising Justice Qazi Amin and Justice Chaudhry Mushtaq asked the petitioner's counsel to prove that Hayat was ill and also apprise the court under which law a schizophrenic prisoner could not be executed.

Justice Project Pakistan (JPP), a law firm working for prisoners’ rights, argued the case on behalf of Hayat's mother, Iqbal Bano.

JPP Director Barrister Sarah Belal said that Khizar Hayat’s mental illness was well-documented and the jail’s own records showed that he suffered from "severe psychosis".

The counsel argued that a "mental patient" cannot be executed but the court rejected the argument, remarking that "the execution of patients is a global debate."

The petitioner reminded the court that in 2008 the jail authorities had diagnosed the then 41-year-old Hayat with paranoid schizophrenia. It prayed that the inmate can still be executed once he has recovered from his illness.

At the conclusion of the arguments, the court set aside the stay petition and specified in its order that Hayat had already been found guilty by the apex court.

The government is kicking out 18 international charities after rejecting their final appeal to stay in the country, a move that an aid group spokesman said on Thursday would affect millions of desperately poor people and lead to tens of millions of aid dollars lost.

The majority of the shuttered aid groups are US-based, while the rest are from Britain and the European Union, according to a government list seen by The Associated Press.

Another 20 groups are at risk of also being expelled after authorities a few months ago singled out some 38 international aid groups for closure, without any explanation.

The development is the latest in a systematic crackdown on international organisations in Pakistan, with authorities using every bureaucratic excuse, such as discrepancies in visa and registration documentation, to target the organisations.

There is also a perception in Islamabad that the US and European countries have secretly brought spies into the country under the guise of aid workers.

On Thursday, Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari said on Twitter the 18 groups that were asked to leave had spread disinformation. “They must leave. They need to work within their stated intent which these 18 didn't do,” she said.

Umair Hasan, spokesman for the Pakistan Humanitarian Foundation — an umbrella representing 15 of the charities — said those charities alone help 11 million poor Pakistanis and contribute more than $130 million in assistance.

“No organisation has been given a clear reason for the denial of its registration renewal applications,” Hasan said.

The crackdown “simply marks the latest chapter in an ongoing effort to push back against foreign NGOs in Pakistan,” said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Programmes at the Washington-based Wilson Centre.

“It's hard to overstate the significance of the hunt for Osama bin Laden and the impact it had on Pakistani perceptions of foreign NGOs.”

Hasan said the 18 expelled groups, with the exception of two that are still in court trying to overturn their ouster, have closed their operations in the country. The groups provided everything from education to health care to sanitary and clean water facilities, he said. Many worked in partnership with provincial governments, often supplementing development budgets.

Now local officials are being “told not to work with these” groups, added Hasan. “Government people up front will tell you they see the value of their work, but the decision has been taken.”

Military spokesman Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor denies any link between the closures of aid groups and the bin Laden operation, insisting they simply did not meet the criteria, though many had operated for decades in Pakistan. Among the US-based organisations are World Vision, Plan International and Catholic Relief Services.

“Civil society space has shrunk,” said Hasan. “Next, they will go after local organisations who receive international funding. It will seriously compromise the independence of organisations, their flexibility of how to operate, where to operate.”

“These crackdowns on charities will deliver another blow to Pakistan's image,” said Kugelman. "While Pakistan certainly isn't the only country to be curtailing the activities of charitable groups, the reputational impacts could be particularly strong because it has a pre-existing image problem."

An election tribunal of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday rejected an election petition challenging the victory of Prime Minister Imran Khan in the July 25 general elections from NA-95, Mianwali.

The tribunal rejected the petition on the basis of being "non-maintainable".

Abdul Wahab of the Pakistan Justice and Democratic Party, a defeated candidate from NA-95, had challenged the election of PM Khan, accusing him of concealing mandatory details, mainly about his children, in the nomination papers.

On Nov 8, the LHC election tribunal reserved its verdict on the maintainability of the petition before which the counsel for the petitioner and Imran Khan concluded their arguments on the "point of maintainability" before the tribunal comprising Justice Shahid Waheed.

Objecting to the maintainability of the election petition, Advocate Babar Awan had argued on behalf of the premier that many legal formalities were not followed before filing the petition. He had said the petition should be dismissed for being time-barred as it was filed after the stipulated time limit of 45 days after the announcement of the election result.

Moreover, he had said the affidavits attached with the petition were attested by an oath commissioner of Islamabad, instead of someone from Lahore.

The counsel had further argued that Imran Khan furnished complete details of his and his dependents’ properties in the nomination papers. He had urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition for being not maintainable.

Responding to the objections raised by the premier's counsel, the petitioner’s counsel Mobeenuddin Qazi had contended that the petitioner was a lawyer of Supreme Court based in Islamabad and the head office of his party was also registered in the federal capital. Therefore, he had said, the objection to the oath commissioner of Islamabad had no value in the eye of law.

He had further said that the petition was filed well within the 45-day time limit. He had pointed out that the time limit started from the day of issuance of gazette notification of the election results by the Election Commission of Pakistan, which, he had said, was issued on Aug 28.

Advocate Qazi had argued that the SC had ruled on a number of occasions that the technicalities should not be given preference on the merits of a case. However, he had said that the Election Rules 2017 provided for seven-days time to remove technical shortcomings, if any, in the petition.

In his election petition, Abdul Wahab had submitted that under section 60(2)(d) of Election Act, 2017 a candidate had to furnish a statement of his assets and liabilities and of his spouse and dependent children. However, he had said, PM Khan failed to disclose details of properties owned by his wife, two sons and ‘daughter’ Tyrian Jade Khan White.

The petitioner had stated that the respondent had not made a truthful declaration in his nomination papers as well as in the affidavit to the effect that Tyrian Jade Khan White was his daughter.

He had said that the respondent stood disqualified under Article 62(1)(d), (e) and (f) and Article 63(1) (o) and (p) of the Constitution. He had urged the tribunal that the election of the prime minister, as returned candidate, be declared as void and had said that the nomination of the respondent was also invalid.

He further had asked the tribunal to de-notify the respondent as a member of the National Assembly and declare the seat as vacant, besides issuing directions to the ECP for initiating appropriate proceedings against him.

The Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) has prepared a bill seeking amendments in the Elections Act, 2017, aimed at doing away with provisions that link the registration of voters with the temporary or permanent address mentioned on their computerised national identity cards (CNICs).

The proposed bill holds importance as nearly 15 million voters, enrolled in areas other than the addresses stated on their CNICs, are set to be shifted by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to their permanent or temporary addresses, if they fail to decide where they want to be registered as voters by the deadline of December 31.

Editorial: Is changing polling areas for 15 million voters a good decision?

The amendment bill submitted to the National Assembly and Senate secretariats by the JI lawmakers seeks the omission of sub-sections 1, 2, 3, and a condition added to sub-section 4, of Section 27 (Place of residence) of the Elections Act.

Sub-section 1 of Section 27 states that a person shall be deemed to be resident of an electoral area if his or her temporary or permanent address on their CNIC issued by the National Database and Registration Authority lies in the said electoral area.

Under sub-sections 2 and 3, a person who is in the service of Pakistan can apply to the registration officer for enrolment in the electoral area in which he or she temporarily resides for being in the service of Pakistan and the facility is also available to their spouse and children.

Meanwhile, sub-section 4 of Section 27 reads: “Notwithstanding, anything contained in this section or any other provision of this Chapter, the registration of a voter at an address other than the permanent or temporary address mentioned in his National Identity Card shall remain valid till he applies for transfer of his vote or for modification or renewal of his National Identity Card in which case his vote shall be registered according to the temporary or permanent address mentioned in the National Identity Card.”

However, a proviso attached to sub-section 4 reads: “Provided that this sub-section (4) including this proviso shall stand omitted on 31st December, 2018.”

Interpreting the proviso, an ECP official had told Dawn that it meant the persons registered as voters at an address other than the ones mentioned on their CNICs had less than a month to decide where they wanted to be registered. Otherwise, he said, they would be enrolled as voters at their permanent or temporary addresses by the ECP.

The official had conceded that the controversial move would open a floodgate of litigation, but insisted that the ECP had no option.

The JI bill now desires that only sub-section 4 be kept under Section 27, and it seeks the omission of the proviso saying sub-section 4 will stand nullified on December 31.

The aim of the proposed amendments is to "save hundreds of thousands of people from a futile exercise under which the elderly, women and youngsters will have to go through the process of getting their votes registered afresh or have their addresses changed in their CNICs", reads the proposed legislation.

If the provision is allowed to go ahead, scores of people would be deprived of exercising their right to franchise, it says.

"Therefore, we desire for the parliament to approve our amendment to get prevent this people-unfriendly step," the bill reads.

According to the ECP, the district election commissioners (DECs) after the Dec 31 deadline will prepare lists of such voters in their respective areas and send notices to them following which they will be registered as voters at the permanent or temporary addresses as mentioned on their CNICs.

As per a public notice issued by the commission, citizens can find out their vote registration details by sending their CNIC number in a text message to 8300.

In order to align their votes with the address mentioned on their CNIC, voters must fill a Form 21, which is available on the ECP website and at DEC offices, and submit it along with a copy of their CNIC at the concerned DEC office.

The Supreme Court on Thursday cautioned mineral water companies that the cost borne by them to use groundwater must not be passed on to consumers.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar issued the warning while hearing a suo motu case regarding the sale of bottled water and extraction of groundwater by bottled water companies.

The court had been informed on Monday that bottled water companies in the country were extracting seven billion litres of groundwater per month to sell it as mineral water for public consumption.

“If Re1 per litre is charged, the amount for extracting seven billion litres of water becomes Rs7 billion every month,” said a report submitted by a Supreme Court-formed committee.

Justice Nisar had then directed bottled water companies to pay the price of groundwater and improve the quality of their products within a week, warning their owners that the firms will otherwise be shut down.

Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, who was representing Nestle Water Company at the hearing, remarked that the top court had taken a major step by regulating water companies.

At this, Justice Nisar said: "Whatever can be done expediently must be done regarding the [proper] treatment of water and whatever areas can afford a delay must have a time frame set."

The chief justice warned that the price of using groundwater had been fixed by the court and must not be avoided by the companies.

"The burden of cost borne by companies for groundwater usage shall not be transferred to consumers," Justice Nisar declared.

He observed that the government of Sindh had set prices for the use of groundwater.

"Balochistan too has set prices for mineral water and soft drinks," a representative from the Balochistan government informed the court.

Explore: A water policy for a Naya Pakistan

Justice Nisar said the theft of resources must be guarded against and every measure must be taken with "good intent".

"I had been thinking of launching a movement against the use of mineral water," the top judge remarked at one point.

The bench ordered bottled water companies to sit down with the court-appointed water commission and decide on how to improve the quality of water and the treatment methods to be employed.

A detailed report must be submitted to the court on December 13 regarding all the recommendations decided upon, the bench further instructed.

The hearing was adjourned until next Thursday.

QUETTA: A five-day polio eradication campaign will begin in 33 districts of Balochistan on Dec 10 with an objective to administer polio drops to around 2.5 million children under the age of five.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Coordinator of Polio Emergency Operation Centre Rashid Razzaq said that all arrangements for the campaign had been completed.

He urged people from all walks of life, including religious scholars, parents and members of civil society, to play their role for making the drive a success.

The government was making efforts to make Quetta, Pishin and Kila Abdullah polio-free areas as these districts had been designated the most high-risk areas, he said, adding most of polio cases were generally reported from these areas.

He said about 10,356 teams of vaccinators would participate in the five-day drive, adding that there would be 8,829 mobile teams, 951 camps in residential areas and 576 camps at entry points of the province.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

PESHAWAR: After failing to hand over 256 micro-hydel power projects to the local communities in the province during the last four years, the ruling PTI has decided to amend the Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation (Pedo) Act, 1993, to remove legal hurdles in this respect.

The Pedo Act, 1993, disallows the transfer of power projects to the government agencies other than Pedo or local communities, while the planning and development department has been reluctant to approve these projects under the Public-Private Partnership Act.

The programme titled ‘Ujaloon ka Safar’ was launched by the last PTI government to execute 356 MHPs in 12 hilly districts of the province through NGOs.

Pedo Act doesn’t allow their transfer to people in remote off-grid area

However, the number was increased to 1,000 in 2016 with the assistance of the World Bank, while its scope was expanded to all parts of the province.

The current provincial cabinet was briefed about the issue in its Nov 22 meeting.

The energy and power department informed participants that the programme was launched for the electrification of remote and off-grid areas of the province through these micro-hydel projects as the residents of those areas didn’t have electric supply.

The proposed law drafted by the energy and power department and presented to the cabinet, a copy of which is available with Dawn, notes that in order to meet the energy needs of these areas, the government had embarked on the initiative to build 356 dams in northern districts of the province, put up 512 micro-hydel units on rivers and tributaries and execute 162 micro-hydel projects on canals under the access to clean energy programme.

It said the cabinet was told that of 356 MHPs, only 256 had been successfully executed and that those units should be handed over to the local communities after their successful testing and commissioning to ensure their long-term sustainability as outlined in the original project planning.

However, the document pointed out that the Pedo’s legal adviser had earlier chosen the Public Private Partnership Act, 2014, to cover the construction of these MHPs and its subsequent handover to the local communities.

It said after a series of meeting between the planning and development, finance and law departments, the public-private partnership unit of the P&D department finally concluded that the Public-Private Partnership Act, 2014, umbrella didn’t cover the project and therefore, the other option available with the government was to amend the Pedo Act, 1993.

The document the Pedo Act, 1993, imposed restrictions on the handing over of all power schemes of any capacity to other agencies.

The cabinet was informed that that Clause 18(2) of the law in question would be amended to allow power generating projects up to two megawatts capacity to other agency or community, while Section 8(2) said the government would have the power to direct the organisation to hand over any scheme other than power one or the power part of a multipurpose scheme carried out by it to any agency of the government or a local body.

The draft amendment proposed to substitute this clause with the organisation with the prior approval of the government, shall have the power to hand over power generation scheme or part of the power plant of multipurpose scheme having capacity not exceeding 2MWs, carried out by it to any agency of government, local body, community base organisation, non-government organisation or local community, as the case may be, in the best public interest on such terms and conditions as deemed appropriate by the board.

The Pedo board had also taken up the issue in its Oct 26 meeting, in which the participants were informed that the organisation was facing numerous problems regarding MHPs sustainability and handing over the projects to communities to manage them by themselves.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

LAHORE: Punjab is going to launch its new labour policy here today (Friday), suggesting some lawmaking to enhance the role of social partners in improving the condition of workers.

In the official document, an attempt has also been made to extend the legal and welfare covers to domestic and home-based workers.

To be formally launched by Labour and Human Resource Minister Ansar Majeed Khan, it proposes a steering committee to oversee implementation of the policy through a unit, serving as secretariat of the Labour Policy.

A senior official told Dawn that in view of the demands for decent living wages, the policy entrusts the Minimum Wages Board with holding tripartite meetings, also attended by eminent economic experts, for identifying the minimum level of wage enough to subsistence as per current inflation and consumer price index before giving a decision, acceptable to all the stakeholders.

Necessary provisions will be added to all relevant laws for addressing discrimination in remuneration and employment on basis of sex, religion, caste, origin, etc and the payment of wages through scheduled banks.

Promising a law on domestic workers, the policy proposes a separate inspection regime for effectively implementing domestic workers policy within months.

For curbing child labour ‘gradually’, it recommends a province-wide survey of child workers, extending scope of vigilance committees, introducing online reporting mechanism and notifying inspectors under the new child labour laws for effective implementation.

It calls for more steps to discourage bonded labour like preferring to procure bricks for public projects from the kilns adhering to the law and improving reporting.

The policy also suggests a centralised database of workers allocating unique code to all establishments and linked with the Federal Board of Revenue, Punjab Revenue Authority, all directorates, hospitals, dispensaries, social welfare centres and other relevant departments and units for easy cross-verification of workers, their documents, contributions and dues.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

LAHORE: “In the past 11 months, around 862 women have been murdered while 2,864 have been raped,” said Additional IG Investigation Abu Bakar Khuda Bakhsh while speaking at a seminar organised by a non-government organisation on Thursday.

He said it was very important to highlight these cases but it was equally important to verify the cases as sometimes the law got misused and the cases got undue hype.

“There are plenty of laws and their implementation is also important,” he said.

“Civil society organisations should also help the real victims.”

Mr Bakhsh quoted the case of one Sughra Bibi who was misjudged as an accused and after she got released from jail two years later, she fought the case for her name to be cleared and ultimately it was discovered that she was innocent. He said there were many such cases which should have received attention.

AIG Gender Crimes’ Cell Shahid Siddique suggested a review of the existing laws instead of making or framing new ones.

“The simple existence of laws cannot raise the conviction rate but the immediate implementation of punishment is what we need,” he suggested and added that there should be implementation of laws on domestic slavery.

He said Punjab police were being improved quickly with induction of more educated staff. He said regarding the rape cases it had been already ordered that evidence and investigation must be done under an officer no less than the rank of an SP.

Hafsa Sajjad from the UN Women said her organisation was focusing a lot on girls’ rights.

Regarding the global 16 days of activism against gender-based violence (GBV), they were also focusing on the #HearMeToo.

“The behaviour of society is not very positive towards a survivor of violence which needs to be dealt with.” She said the youth must be educated about these issues.

Meanwhile, the Mumkin Alliance shared the current situation of violence against women/girls in Punjab in a roundtable discussion held today in which renowned parliamentarians, representatives of civil society organizations and relevant government departments took part. The discussion also revolved around finding out the gaps in legislation and implementation and extracting the recommendations to improve the safety system for women protection.

Mumtaz Mughal, resident director Punjab, Aurat Foundation, referred to the Police Investigating Branch report and said 151 women were victimised in gang rapes from September 2017 to September 2018 in Punjab which was very alarming. Honour killing, domestic violence, early and forced marriages, kidnapping and other crimes were reported but mental and physiological violence was still unreported.

Last year (2017), 181 women were murdered for honour killing in Punjab.

“There is a need of strong coordination between the crisis centre and local government,” Ms Mughal said.

“The word ‘Panchayat’ should be removed from the local government ordinance. The girls, staying in the crisis centre should be connected with financial facilities,” she added.

PML-N MPA Bushra Anjum Butt and PTI MNA and Anila Beg demanded the present government take the previous government initiatives forward for improving the system. Sensitisation of the children must begin early.

The discussion demanded the government allocate sufficient financial and adequate human resources to ensure smooth provision of justice. The government should also ensure the access of grassroots women/girls to the state-funded legal-aid programmes, it demanded and recommended that there should be an accountability mechanism to ensure proper implementation of pro-women legislation.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

TOBA TEK SINGH: The Federal Investigation Agency cyber crime wing has arrested a man for creating fake WhatsApp and Facebook accounts in the name of his ex-wife and posting obscene pictures to malign her.

According to the FIA’s Faisalabad cyber crime wing in-charge Shoaib Haroon, the suspect, Waqar Mahmood, a resident of Chichawatni, was arrested on the complaint of his former wife who resided in Garh Mohalla locality of Gojra.

He said during interrogation the suspect confessed to have created six fake WhatsApp and two Facebook accounts on his mobile phone for maligning his ex-spouse.

He said the complainant was divorced by the suspect who also hurls threats at her.

FIA booked the suspect under sections 20, 21 and 24 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016.

DIES: A man died and three others were injured critically on Thursday when two motorcycles collided with each other and then hit by a tractor-trolley on Thursday near Chak 309-GB on Pirmahal-Khikha road.

Chuttiana police said Zaman and Luqman, both residents of Chak 309-GB were on a motorcycle when it collided with another motorbike on which Wasim and Imran Ali of B-Block, Pirmahal, were riding.

After the collision, both the bikes were ran over by a tractor-trolley. As a result, all the four men were seriously injured. They were rushed to the DHQ hospital, where Zaman succumbed to his injuries.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

PESHAWAR: End to Prevention of Thalassaemia Major Project has been put on the back burner and cases of the blood-borne disease have been increasing across the province, according to sources.

The health experts said that only in Lady Reading Hospital, more than 8,000 pints of blood had been transfused to the children affected by thalassaemia. They said that same was situation in other major hospitals and charity hospitals. They added that people ran from pillar to post to find blood for their ailing children.

Launched in 2005, the project was the first-ever initiative in the country to do away with the childhood ailments through raising public awareness to put brakes on the commonest genetic hemoglobin disorder but it was stopped by health department in 2012 putting an end to the long efforts to bring down the disease.

According to paediatricians, eight per cent population of KP vulnerable to the disease

The health department has included thalassaemia in the integrated programme along with four other diseases. However, no work is being done regarding eradication and prevention of the ailment or treatment of the affected children. The office of the project, headed by noted paediatrician Prof Abdul Hameed, was located at Khyber Medical College and had started research regarding the hereditary sickness.

The closure of the project has halted the efforts made regarding prevention, diagnosis and treatment of genetic hemoglobin disorder. According to Pakistan Paediatrics Association, eight per cent of the population of the province is carrier of thalassaemia minor and vulnerable to the disease.

Under the project, 5,000 were screened and plans were afoot to extend the process to the entire vulnerable population, especially to test the people with thalassaemia minor but its closure stopped all the efforts abruptly due to which the number of patients is increasing with each passing day.

Ironically, the government had announced to make the scheme a regular programme of health department but its closure surprised many people including its project director Prof Hameed, who worked voluntarily.

PPA provincial president Prof Afzal Khan, when contacted, said that the province had an estimated 30,000 thalassaemia patients, who required regular blood transfusion for survival.

He said that blood transfusion was not a permanent cure of the disease and the need of transfusion kept increasing with passing of time. He added that first the patients needed transfusion on quarterly basis then after every two months and then on monthly basis so it was difficult for them to arrange.

“PPA has been trying to put in place a mechanism for prevention of the disease but it requires government’s assistance and patronage,” said Prof Afzal.

He said that treatment of such patients was bone marrow transplantation, the cost of which was more than Rs2.5 million. He said that most of the parents of the affected children could not afford it.

“Not only had this but the patients also require Rs20, 000 for subsequent treatment after transplantation. We demand of the government to re-launch the same project from where it has been stopped to cope with the rising incidence of the blood disorders among the children,” said Prof Afzal.

Prof Abdul Hameed, when contacted, said that they had planned to take measures to cut down thalassaemia cases through counselling, research and awareness.

He said that Iran had completely eliminated the disease through prevention. He added that the project was significant as public sector hospital lacked facilities for thalassaemia patients and they relied on blood transfusion at private blood transfusion centres.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Thursday summoned the director of the Federal Investigation Agency, Sindh, with the relevant record on Dec 20 on a petition seeking the whereabouts of around 20 missing children.

The two-judge SHC bench, headed by Justice Naimatullah Phulpoto, hearing a number of cases of missing persons, expressed displeasure with the FIA for its officials’ absence. A notice was issued at the last hearing to the investigating agency after a question was raised about the possibility of use of these children in human trafficking.

The bench also came down hard on police when they informed the court that one of the missing girls had been recovered in Korangi on Nov 19, but the suspect could not be arrested.

Chides police for their inability to arrest suspected kidnapper of a recovered girl

Justice Phulpoto observed that it was a failure of the police and if the police had caught the suspect, he might have provided information which could help the police recover the remaining 19 children.

It again ordered CIA DIG Amin Yusufzai, who is heading a committee, to make efforts for the recovery of the missing children, to use modern devices for the purpose and show progress at the next hearing.

The parents of missing children were also present during the hearing, but they appeared to be very disturbed, it added and also directed the DIG to arrest the suspect involved in the abduction of the recovered girl and produce him before court.

Warning to IGP

“We also direct the inspector general of the Sindh police to look into the matter personally, else he will appear on the next date,” the bench warned the provincial police officer.

At the outset of the hearing, the DIG submitted a progress report and said that a missing girl was recovered from a park in Korangi No. 5 on Nov 19 and after completing the legal formalities the minor girl was handed over to her parents. He added that efforts were being made to locate the remaining children.

He further said that despite a remainder, the response from the FIA about the provision of information about human trafficking was still awaited.

In the previous hearing, the bench had issued a notice to the FIA and also directed it to assist the police in locating the children after the bench raised the question about the possible use of children in human trafficking.

On a directive of the SHC, the police had registered 23 FIRs regarding missing children at the Awami Colony, North Nazimabad, Nazimabad, Ferozabad, Saudabad, Docks, Preedy, Boat Basin, Quaidabad, Gulshan-i-Iqbal, New Karachi Industrial Area and Korangi police stations. Later, three of the children returned home while the fourth one was recovered last month.

A petition was filed by Roshni Research and Development Welfare in 2012 seeking court directives to the provincial police for considering the missing children cases, who went missing in different parts of Karachi, a cognizable offence and registering FIRs in that regard.

The NGO alleged that cases of missing children were not properly investigated by the police which resulted in many preventable deaths.

Meanwhile, the same bench also heard several identical petitions of missing persons, referred some of them to the Karachi police chief to personally look into them and expressed dissatisfaction on the progress reports filed by the investigation officers.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

KARACHI: The Sindh environmental protection tribunal has directed the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency to communicate to the Sindh Building Control Authority that no high-rise construction project be approved without obtaining the agency’s approval for the projects’ initial environmental examination and environmental impact assessment in terms of Section 17(1) of the Sindh Environmental Protection Act, 2014.

The three-member tribunal, headed by its chairman retired Justice Sadiq Hussain Bhatti, also directed Sepa that if the SBCA or any of its officers gave the go-ahead for the construction of any such project in contravention of any provision of the act, they should be prosecuted by Sepa for such a violation “as an accomplice of the violator” under the provisions of the act.

The chairman further directed the director general of Sepa to submit monthly statements regarding the Initial Environmental Examination/Environmental Impact Assessment, as required under Section 17(1) of the act, to the tribunal for its approval.

Convict pleads guilty, but claims ignorance of law about environmental assessment

The tribunal also asked the office to communicate this order to all concerned for information, compliance and submission of the report within three months.

The tribunal that also comprised Mohammad Arif Khan and Abdul Rauf Memon as its members legal and technical, respectively, passed these directives after hearing final arguments from assistant prosecutor general Khan Mohammad Bhangwar and Abdul Malik, assistant director/investigating officer and Shoaib-ul-Islam, the owner/chief executive officer of a high-rise housing project named Famous Tower located on plot B-153, Block-H of North Nazimabad.

The tribunal also convicted him for violation of Section 17(1) of the Sindh Environmental Project Act 2014, imposing a fine of Rs100,000 on him under Section 22(1) of the act. The Sepa DG was directed to conduct an environmental audit and review of the project and submit a final report within three months.

According to the prosecution, Sepa filed a complaint against the convict, who is the owner/chief executive officer of the high-rise building project, alleging that a Sepa team visited the convict’s project on Nov 16, 2017 and found the construction activity in full swing there. However, no approval of the Initial Environmental Examination/Environmental Impact Assessment (IEE/EIA) was obtained from Sepa in violation of Section 17(1) of the act.

It further said that after taking pictures of the construction of the project the team submitted an inspection report to the agency, which subsequently sent notices to the convict on Nov 17 and Nov 29, 2017, respectively. But the owner of the project failed to comply with the directions contained in the notices, thus the agency filed a complaint before the tribunal pleading to take cognizance of the offences committed by the accused and punish him as per law.

In response to a notice issued by the tribunal, accused Shoaib-ul-Islam appeared before it and was given copies of the documentary evidence obtained and material collected by the investigating officer, as required under Section 265-C of the CrPC.

Indictment

On Oct 18, the tribunal indicted the accused who pleaded guilty to the charges levelled against him by the prosecution. However, the accused said that this was his first project of constructing a high-rise building and he had never been involved in any high-rise building project in any part of Karachi.

He further said that he was not aware of the requirement before the commencement of the construction that the proponent of the project had to file an IEE/EIA report before the agency and that the proponent should commence his project only after approval by the agency. He further deposed that he believed that the SBCA was the only authority which approved housing projects and building plans in the entire province, adding that the person concerned in the authority had directed him to get a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Civil Aviation Authority with respect to the height of the project, which he did and submitted it to the SBCA to get approval of the project.

He categorically submitted that during the process of approval of his project, the SBCA never asked him to submit any approval from Sepa and that the SBCA did not inform him that before the commencement of the work on the project getting approval of the IEE/EIA was a mandatory requirement of the law and that he should obtain the same or failure to do so was a punishable offence under the environmental protection laws.

The accused also submitted that he had not received any verbal or written communication in any form from any official of Sepa nor was he or the project’s site visited by any of its officials during the two-year period of construction, except that two officials after its completion demanded an IEE of the project for the first time from the watchman present there.

After hearing the accused, assistant prosecutor general Bhangwar and Sepa assistant director Abdul Malik, the tribunal members noted that the Environmental Protection Orders were issued by Sepa after completion of the construction phase of the subject building project, adding that there was nothing on record that the SBCA or Sepa had ever directed the accused to file IEE/EIA with the agency before the commencement of construction.

They observed that the SBCA’s relevant person could have directed the present accused to obtain an IEE/EIA report from Sepa during the process of approval of the building plan, but for the reason best known to them, they kept mum in that regard and allowed the violation of the act to happen.

The tribunal further observed that it could not be ascertained at the present stage whether it was ignorance or negligence on the part of the SBCA or its officer concerned, who approved a building plan without requiring the accused to submit an IEE/EIA report and seek approval of the same from Sepa, which resulted in a violation of the act.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

MITHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Thursday announced that the Thar coal power project would start churning out electricity in mid-February 2019.

He was speaking at a meeting while reviewing progress of coal mining and power plant installation in Islamkot. Provincial Minister for Energy Imtiaz Shaikh, Adviser to the CM Murtaza Wahab, Planning and Development chairman Mohammad Waseem, Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC) chairman Khursheed Jamali, Thar Foundation chief executive officer Abul Fazal Rizvi and senior officers of the mining company attended the meeting.

The chief minister noted that the twin power plant at the site’s block-II was projected to produce 660MW electricity. He expressed his pleasure over induction of the plant by February next, saying that the work had been completed four months ahead of schedule.

“We are going to inject the first electron in the national grid in February,” he said.

Mr Shah noted that the royalty of Thar coal project would be around Rs2.5 billion per year which would be spent on development in Thar for its people.

At a briefing, the chief minister was informed that an overall 94 per cent progress had been made in the mining work as against the target of achieving 88pc till this day of December.

He was informed that the current depth of mines was 154 metres. The CM examined the coal excavated from the mines.

He was informed that the estimated cost of the project was $845 million but it was being completed with a cost of $670m hence a saving of $175m.

He was told that 96pc work on the power plant had been completed.

CM Shah gave a cheque of Rs50m to the Thar Foundation chief for providing fodder to 20,000 families of Islamkot taluka so that they could feed their livestock.

Mr Shah said that the Thar Foundation was building a 250-bed hospital at a cost of Rs2 billion. The Sindh government had already released Rs50 million for the project, he added.

He said that a new village, New Senhri Goth, for the people displaced due to the land acquisition for the project’s block-II, had also been established. He said 172 families would be shifted to the village by December 20. “We have not only provided them with well-designed 1,100-sqaure metre houses with all facilities such as kitchen, toilet and corridor, but also given them jobs, compensation against their houses and educational and health facilities within their village,” he added.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

RAWALPINDI: As many as 212 people detained during the police crackdown against Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) last month have been released from different prisons across the province.

Around 3,000 TLP workers, including its leaders, arrested under the charges of sedition and terrorism are still languishing in jails. The government has started reviewing cases of those who were detained under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) ordinance. They are being released upon the completion of the verification process, said sources.

Among those released on Wednesday, 12 were from the Rawalpindi district. The sources said 477 people were arrested by the Rawalpindi police under the MPO and sent to the Adiala jail and their cases were being reviewed to ascertain if they were involved in violence or had been picked under the MPO.

Three separate FIRs had been registered with the police and 207 workers and activists, including three leaders of local chapter of the TLP, were booked on sedition charges, blocking roads and damaging government installations.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

ISLAMABAD: As part of its annual ritual, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has asked lawmakers to submit their statements of assets for the financial year ending on June 30, 2018.

The ECP on Monday issued notifications directing federal and provincial legislators to file their yearly statements of assets and liabilities, as well as of their spouses and dependents, by Dec 31.

The last date for submission of these statements of assets under Section 42A of the Representation of the People’s Act, 1976 and Section 25A of the Senate (Elections) Act, 1975 was Sept 30, but a change was brought through the Elections Act, 2017 to make it Dec 31.

Section 137 (1) of the Elections Act reads: “Every member of an Assembly and Senate shall submit to the Commission, on or before 31st December each year, a copy of his statement of assets and liabilities, including assets and liabilities of his spouse and dependent children as on the preceding 30th day of June on Form B.”

Under the following sub-sections, the commission on the first day of January each year is to publish the names of members who failed to submit the requisite statements of assets and liabilities within the specified period and on Jan 16 by an order suspend the membership of a member of an assembly and Senate who fails to submit the statement of assets and liabilities by Jan 15 and such a member shall cease to function till he files the statement.

Section 137 (4) reads: “Where a Member submits the statement of assets and liabilities under this section which is found to be false in material particulars, he may, within 120 from the date submission of the statement, be proceeded against for committing the offence of corrupt practice.”

The ECP had announced a plan to scrutinise the statements of assets and liabilities of all lawmakers in December 2016, and the process had also commenced, but the plan was shelved halfway without even an announcement.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

QUETTA: Ruling Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) founder Saeed Ahmed Hashmi has said that federal Minister for Planning Khusro Bakhtiar has confirmed that western route is not part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

“The apprehensions of the people and political forces of Balochistan have proved to be true after the federal minister’s statement,” Mr Hashmi said while talking to journalists here on Wednesday.

He said if the planning minister’s statement was true then it would be a big injustice with the people of Balochistan.

Mr Hashmi criticised the PML-N government for deceiving the people of the province and said that deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif had taken Meh­mo­od Khan Achakzai, Maulana Fazlur Rehman and other leaders to Zhob and told them that he had inaugurated the construction of western route at Mughal Kot.

He said the people and the government of Balochistan had no knowledge about the development projects included in the CPEC.

“Despite passage of about five years the people of the province have witnessed no development project initiated under the CPEC,” Mr Hashmi said, adding nobody knew about the share of Balochistan in the $62 billion project.

He said the CPEC was the last chance to bring prosperity to Balochistan.

The BAP leader urged Prime Minister Imran Khan to take steps to satisfy the people of Balochistan in this regard.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2018

Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Friday berated Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) officials for a lack of concrete steps towards the verification of degrees held by pilots and cabin crew members.

A three-judge SC bench headed by the chief justice, which took up in May 2018 a case relating to allegations of fake degrees held by pilots of different airlines, was informed today that of the 498 pilots in PIA, the degrees of 12 pilots have turned out to be fake.

The deputy attorney general told the court that disciplinary action is being taken against the fake degree holders, with a CAA official saying that the licenses of pilots with fake degrees have been suspended and the pilots grounded.

Of the 1,864 crew members in PIA, 73 hold fake degrees, the deputy attorney general said, adding that 146 crew members' degrees are still in the verification phase.

The chief justice questioned the need for an inquiry if the degrees are fake, to which a PIA official said that employees have been obtaining stay orders preventing action being taken against them.

Justice Nisar assured the official that the court would examine the matter of stay orders.

The court summoned PIA and CAA officials, as well as the heads of universities that did not provide verification of degrees. A complete record of fake degree holders was also summoned by the bench.

The chief justice regretted that neither PIA nor the CAA had taken any concrete steps regarding the verification of degrees despite the court having taken notice of the matter months ago.

According to a report submitted by the additional attorney general in court earlier, there are 3,667 pilots and cabin crew in all four local airlines.