ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court summoned on Wednesday former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and a number of parliamentarians and provincial lawmakers who had received development funds from the prime minister’s discretionary funds during the last PPP government.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice Saqib Nisar hearing a federal government’s petition seeking review of the court’s Dec 5, 2013 judgment on the PM’s discretionary funds issued notices to Raja Ashraf, former law minister Maula Bux Chandio, parliamentarians Ghaus Bux Mehar, Anwar Ali Cheema and Amir Sultan Cheema and MPAs Liaquat Ali Shahbab, Mohammad Himayat and Mohammad Ali Bacha.

The next hearing will be held in the first week of November.

Also read: Former PM Raja Pervez Ashraf, Shaukat Tareen indicted in RPP case

The politicians had become intervener and were heard during a suo motu proceeding initiated by former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. The case related to Raja Ashraf doling out Rs47 billion under the Peoples Works Programme (PWP-II).

In its verdict the court had laid down criteria for the exercise of discretion by prime ministers in the distribution of development funds among parliamentarians under the public works programmes.

It held that the Constitution did not allow allocation of funds for MNAs, MPAs and notables at the sole discretion of the prime minister. Therefore, it was illegal and unconstitutional and the government was bound to evolve a procedure for governing such allocations.

The verdict allowed supplementary grant but asked the government to strictly follow procedures provided in Articles 83 and 84 of the Constitution and relevant rules.

Since the judgment also ties the hands of the present PML-N government, the finance ministry moved a review petition on Feb 8 and argued that the apex court had not correctly interpreted the articles 83 and 84 and specifically mentioned the provision suggesting the government to seek prior approval of the National Assembly before incurring the supplementary expenditures.

“The finding of the Supreme Court in the exercise of discretionary funds, if implemented, will cause serious governance problems,” the review petition said, adding that expenditures were required to be approved by the prime minister before their submission to parliament.

“Seeking prior approval from the National Assembly for supplementary expenditures will gravely imperil the working of the government and also take unnecessary time of the assembly because such needs occur regularly and require immediate action,” the petition argued.

In case of disasters like floods, funds from the PSDP had to be diverted to emergency rehabilitation projects which could not be delayed, the petition said, adding that sometimes costs of projects were revised because of cost escalation, unforeseen events like delay in land acquisition involving court cases, change in scope in accordance with the new facts found during implementation of projects, etc. Such projects needed additional allocations in the course of fiscal year necessitating supplementary grants.

During the hearing on Wednesday, Attorney General Salman Butt explained that the government was not questioning the judgment on merit but only wanted interpretation of Articles 83 and 84.

CONTEMPT CASE: The court issued notices to the finance secretary, Accountant General Pakistan Revenue, PWD director general and Treasury Office Lahore in a contempt case moved by two contractors from Lahore.

Contractors Tayyab Jaffery and Asghar Ali contended that development funds had not been released although there were clear instructions in the court’s judgment that the funds should not be allowed to lapse.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2014