KARACHI: KESC issued summons in Rs150 million damages suit
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, July 4: The Sindh High Court issued summons to the Karachi Electricity Supply Corporation for Aug 23 in a suit for damages amounting to Rs 150 million. Seven-year-old plaintiff Mohammad Arman submitted through Advocates Nasir Maqsood and Sharmin Nasir that he lost his right arm and fingers of his feet when he came into contact with a high tension wire dangling from an electricity pole at Orangi on July 10, 2004.
The accident was caused by the gross negligence of the KESC, which was responsible for proper maintenance of its network. He has been crippled for life and the corporation was liable to compensate him for the pecuniary and other losses suffered by him, the plaintiff said. The SHC office sought the KESC reply to the averments by Aug 23.
LB POLLS: A petition was on Monday moved in the Sindh High Court to challenge the holding of local government elections on non-party basis.
Petitioner ‘Awami Himayat Tehrik’ stated the 2001 polls were held at a time when the Constitution was in abeyance. Now that the basic law has been restored, political parties cannot be barred from contesting the polls under Article 17 of the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of association. In any case, the petition said, the parties would be putting up their candidates as ‘groups’.
LOTTERY CASE: The Sindh High Court adjourned on Monday hearing of a petition challenging the legal validity of the Punjab Development Fund lottery.
An SHC division bench had restrained the Punjab government and other respondents from distributing prizes among the winners of June 11 draw of the lottery pending the proceedings. The government counsel informed the new vacation bench that the Supreme Court had since admitted its appeal against the interim order and suspended its operation. Now that the highest court was seized of the matter, the SHC should not proceed with it. The hearing was adjourned to a date in office.
Petitioner Sajjad Ahmed Bhatti submitted through Advocate Asif Ali Razzak Soomro that the lottery was un-Islamic under the concurring judgments of the Federal Shariat Court and the Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court. Besides, it had been made dubious by marketing of tickets with identical numbers.
PIR MAZHAR’S PLEA: The Sindh High Court asked the provincial and federal law enforcement agencies on Monday to submit their comments on a petition moved by a former provincial minister against raids to arrest him.
Pir Mazharul Haq, former PPP law minister, said he had recently been granted protective bail by the high court but the police were conducting raids and inquiring about his whereabouts from members of his family on his return home from abroad. He apprehended that he might be arrested in a blind FIR registered against ‘unknown people’.
According to the petitioner, he had already been admitted to bail in all cases pending against him. There was no other case pending against him but a blind FIR may be pressed into service to effect his arrest.
He requested the court to direct the law enforcement agencies to bring on record all cases against him and also restrain them from conducting raids and harassing his family members.
A division bench, comprising Justices Ataur Rahman and Khilji Arif Hussain, asked the respondent agencies to submit their comments by July 18.
NAB CASE: Another division bench, comprising Justices S. Ali Aslam Jafri and Maqbool Baqar, admitted an accountability case accused to bail in the sum of Rs 500,000. Pir Bux Solangi, assistant executive engineer, Port Qasim Authority, was accused of complicity in sub-standard construction of conduits for bulk water supply from Thatta to Karachi.
The contract was awarded to Abdus Sattar Mandokhel, who is the main accused in the reference. The contractor was earlier granted bail in the sum of Rs 2 million. Three other co-accused, PQA officials Irshad Shaikh, Hamzo Khan Gabol and Sahibdad Mengal, were also admitted to bail on June 27 in the sum of Rs 500,000 each.
Advocate Mohammad Ashraff Kazi and Jan Mohammad Khuhro argued on behalf of petitioner that there was no evidence on record to connect him with the commission of the offence. The other accused had already been enlarged on bail and the rule of consistency demanded that the only accused still behind bars should also be extended the concession, they said.
