ISLAMABAD: The Isla­mabad High Court on Tuesday suspended a Pakistan Information Comm­ission (PIC) order that directed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to make public its annual budgets, audit reports, remuneration of national players, selection committee members, and expenditure on the T20 World Cup 2026.

A single-member bench of Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar issued notices to respondents for September 22, 2026, while taking up a writ petition filed by the PCB through Advocate Kashif Ali Malik. The court stayed the operation of the PIC’s July 9 ruling until the next hearing.

The PCB contended that the impugned order was passed in excess of jurisdiction and in violation of the Right of Access to Information Act, 2017. It argued that the Commission had failed to distinguish between information liable to proactive disclosure under Section 5 and information protected under statutory exemptions relating to personal privacy, confidential contractual arrangements, commercially sensitive data, and third-party interests.

The PCB, which generates its revenues primarily through commercial activities rather than government funding, maintained that the information sought extended beyond institutional expenditure to personal financial details of identifiable individuals, without recognising the distinction between institutional transparency and private financial affairs.

The board has faced persistent scrutiny over financial transparency.

Since the appointment of Chairman Mohsin Naqvi in 2024, the PCB has discontinued the practice of posting detailed financial statements on its website, a departure from previous norms that had drawn criticism from transparency advocates and prompted the underlying information requests.

Assistant Attorney Gen­eral Asif Khan Jadoon also appeared before the court. The court also allowed the PCB’s exemption application subject to all just and legal exceptions.

The matter has been adjourned until September 22, 2026.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2026