ISLAMABAD: The suspension of crushing or manufacturing processes at three Sharif family sugar mills in Rahim Yar Khan will remain in effect for a week commencing on Feb 12.

In a three-page order issued on Monday, a three-judge Supreme Court Bench — headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar — directed the Lahore High Court registrar to fix pending intra-court appeals (ICAs) launched by the mill owners before a bench, preferably presided by LHC Chief Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, on Feb 14 (Tuesday).

On Feb 9, the apex court had taken up petitions moved by JDW Sugar Mills Ltd — a mill situated in the Sadiqabad tehsil of Rahim Yar Khan and believed to be owned by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) secretary general Jahangir Khan Tareen.

The petitioner had challenged an LHC division bench order suspending a decision by LHC Justice Ayesha Malik and issuing a status quo against the restriction on the shifting of five sugar mills, owned by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and their relatives.

Apex court specifies timeline of suspension, sends matter back to high court

The three mills in question are Ittefaq Sugar Mills Ltd, Haseeb Waqas Sugar Mills Ltd and Chaudhry Sugar Mills Ltd.

“We are sanguine that keeping in view the importance and urgency of the matter, the bench hearing such applications shall decide the same by or before Feb 18,” the order said.

In the order, the court’s considered view was that in passing the Oct 24, 2016 order, certain important documents, including different restraining orders of the high court passed on other writ petitions, pleading of the parties and reports of the local commission in the Ittefaq Sugar Mills case, “either eluded the attention of the high court or were not brought to the notice of the court by the parties”.

These documents, orders, pleadings and reports, the Supreme Court observed, have been strenuously relied upon by the counsel representing the petitioners and the respondents and have their own points of view about the interpretation, meaning and effect of such restraining orders, the order said.

“We however, do not have the benefit of the informed opinion of the high court in the context of these documents, orders and reports,” the order said, adding that the Oct 24 order reflected “non-application of judicial mind by the high court as no adequate reasons have been assigned while deciding the applications of the respondents for the grant of stay orders/injunctive relief”.

“Thus, the present matter for its deficiencies in our view falls within the purview of the exceptions enunciated by this court for interfering with the interim orders passed by the high court,” the order maintained. To substantiate, the bench also cited a number of judgements, such as the Islamic Republic of Pakistan through Secretary Establishment Division and others versus Muhammad Zaman Khan 1997; and Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar versus the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education 2003.

Setting aside the high court order, the Supreme Court said: “We remand the matter back to the high court for deciding the applications for stay/injunctive relief moved by the respondents in the pending ICAs filed by parties, after hearing the parties and taking into consideration all the documents etc.”

Published in Dawn February 14th, 2017