ISLAMABAD, Feb 12: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the heads of all government departments to take action against the officials responsible for causing loss to exchequer by filing cases beyond the limit prescribed by law.

Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, writing for the bench comprising Justice Hamid Ali Mirza and Abdul Hameed Dogar, said the court was helpless in cases filed beyond the required time. The case pertains to evacuee property, titled as chairman, district evacuee trust, Jhelum, versus Abdul Khaliq.

The apex court observed that concerned departments must know that delay in filing of proceedings could only be condoned if it was sought on sufficient grounds. No special indulgence could be shown to such departments because it was a well settled law that no preferential treatment could be offered to the government departments or autonomous bodies, the court observed. “Their cases have to be dealt with same manner as the cases of an ordinary litigant citizen.”

The apex court ordered that if the cases belonging to the government/autonomous bodies were decided against the department on the question of limitation, the courts must pass direction to the high-ups of the departments to take action against those officers who were directly or indirectly responsible for causing the delay in instituting the cases beyond the period of limitation.

The court observed that even in absence of such directions, it would be duty of such officers to take action. “If such unscrupulous persons are not proceeded against, they will have no fear of causing huge losses to the government/autonomous functionaries at the cost of public exchequer because ultimately it is the public at large who suffer, being the ultimate beneficiaries of the government property.”

The court appreciated the steps taken by the incumbent chairman of the Evacuee

Trust Property Board, Lahore, for initiating action against the officers who were responsible for filing instant petition beyond period of limitation and “we are hopeful that in future other responsible officers would also do so.”

The court observed that the trust chairman had candidly conceded that instant petition should not have been filed by his department because the property in question did not belong to it.