KARACHI: The provincial government suffered a setback on Friday when the Sindh High Court (SHC) restrained it for four weeks from procuring 138 double-cabin vehicles for assistant commissioners (ACs) posted across the province.

A two-judge bench comprising Justice Salahuddin Panhwar and Justice Amjad Ali Sahito passed the interim order on a petition impugning a letter seeking funds from the finance department for the purchase of such costly vehicles.

It also issued notices to the Sindh chief secretary, finance secretary, officials of the Board of Revenue and advocate general for the next hearing to be fixed after four weeks.

Jamaat-i-Islami’s (JI) MPA Mohammad Farooq and two others petitioned the SHC to challenge a letter written on Sept 3, by the services, general administration and coordination department to the finance secretary for the release of nearly Rs2 billion funds to procure 138 costly vehicles (4x4 double cabin) for the ACs across the Sindh.

JI lawmaker challenges govt move seeking release of around Rs2bn for procurement

Representing the petitioners, Advocate Usman Farooq submitted that a lawmaker and a lawyer were among the petitioners and they challenged the letter seeking to release the amount of Rs1,991,892,000 for the procurement of 138 double-cabin vehicles.

He said that the impugned letter issued by the official respondents was misuse of public exchequer especially when the entire province was suffering from budgetary deficits.

Besides, the counsel maintained that almost the entire province had plain land and therefore, there was no justification to purchase such type of vehicles.

He pleaded to put up the respondents on notice, seeking a restraining order not to act upon the impugned letter.

After a preliminary hearing, the bench in its order said: “Be that as it may, let notice be issued to the respondents as well as Advocate General Sindh for a date to be fixed by the office after four weeks. In the meantime, official respondents are directed not to act upon the letter dated 3rd September, 2024 available at page-21 of court file till the next date of hearing.”

The petitioners also contended that such allocation was unnecessary, arbitrary and constituted a gross misuse of public funds as use of nearly Rs2bn from the provincial budget for the procurement of the costly vehicles for government officers at a time when the economy was facing serious financial risks and it amounted to a clear disregard for public interest and fiduciary duties of the respondents.

The petitioners stated that the country was already struggling with an inadequate healthcare system, underfunded educational institutions and crumbling infrastructure which required urgent financial support. The federal government was under immense pressure to control fiscal deficits and enhance revenue generation through taxation while the provincial government was planning to purchase costly vehicles for bureaucrats, they added.

They asked the SHC to declare the impugned letter illegal, arbitrary and unconstitutional and to restrain the respondents from proceeding with the procurement of vehicles.

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2024