Commercial ventures of state institutions vex IHC CJ

While expressing its vexation, the Islamabad High Court has said that every government institution has launched its own real estate business which should come to an end as it creates a conflict of interests, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

The court asked Attorney General of Pakistan Khalid Jawed Khan to bring the matter to the notice of the federal government and cabinet. 

The IHC headed by Chief Justice Athar Minallah heard a case against non-implementation of Police Order, 2002 on Thursday. 

The CJ deplored that all state machinery was involved in illegal occupation. “Every institution has opened its own real estate business. It’s a crime. The institutions which are responsible to eradicate crimes, are themselves involved in crimes and are protecting criminals,” the judge added.

Justice Minallah said that a prisoner in Bhakkar jail revealed in his letter that how the entire state machinery was involved in aggression. Real culprits go scot-free as they enjoy state protection, the prisoner wrote. 

The CJ observed that this city was “Elite Captured’ as the in-service officers of the Interior Ministry were running a big housing society. Police department is also making its own housing society. People are facing agonies while the law providing institutions are indulged in their own businesses, he added.

Justice Minallah said that the court had sent the matter to the federal government but nothing happened. Who will hear the pleas of the weaker sections of society, he said adding that police officers knew fully well how people illegally occupied lands and how innocent people were snatched. This could not have happened without the connivance of SHO or Patwari (land revenue official), he remarked. 

He lamented that the institutions were running private businesses by building societies in their names. What could be a bigger conflict of interests than this, he remarked. 

The chief justice said that the Police Order was introduced in 2015 and time and again the court had asked to act upon the order. He remarked that there should have been some movement in the midst of government quarters after the letter from the jail but when it was a matter of a poor, media too seemed a bit sluggish. The case is being moved to the lower court and its credit goes to prime minister, he said adding if something happened to a rich man, all state machinery reached there.

Justice Minallah lamented that the investigation officer knew nothing about investigation and our courts earned bad name in the international ranking of justice as Pakistani courts come on No 130 in a list of 136 countries.

The whole system is supposed to work for a common man but it seems that the entire system is working against the common man. Rather the state institutions are promoting themselves by launching their private businesses, he remarked. 

Reporter Awais Kiyani