The
Supreme Court Orders Immediate Release of Election Funds for Punjab and Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa, Government Refuses to Comply
In a recent development, the Supreme Court has directed the
State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to disburse funds worth Rs21 billion for the
upcoming elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and send an
"appropriate communication" to the finance ministry by Monday (April
17). The court order emphasizes that the funds are to be made "immediately
and within a matter of a day" available to the Election Commission of
Pakistan (ECP) without any procedural or constitutional hurdles.
Earlier, a three-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by
Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, had ordered the government to
provide the said amount to the ECP by April 10. However, the government
referred the matter to Parliament for approval, which was denied, and thus
failed to comply with the court order.
As a consequence, the Supreme Court issued notices to the
finance secretary, SBP governor, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor
Awan, and the ECP, directing them to appear before the judges' chamber on April
14. During the in-chamber hearing, the AGP, SBP Deputy Governor Sima Kamil,
finance secretaries, and ECP officials briefed the court on the government's
failure to disburse the funds as ordered.
The Supreme Court's decision has paved the way for the smooth
conduct of elections in the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies, and the
SBP has been directed to provide details of all monies of the federal
government under its control, custody, or management. The court is expected to
issue a formal order in this regard after Friday prayers.
The court order
The Supreme Court issued a written order that stated the
funds and monies of the federal government which were under the central bank's
custody, control, and management were set out in a statement presented to a
court by the SBP acting governor.
This statement constituted the Federal Consolidated Fund, of
which Account No. I (Non-Food) constituted by far the largest component of the
fund, being 98.77% thereof. The SBP official confirmed that the Rs21 required
by the commission could be made available from the funds under the custody,
control, and management of the State Bank, with particular reference to Account
I, if the court so directed and ordered.
The Finance Ministry Special Secretary also gave a
presentation to the court on the financial position of the Government of
Pakistan, stating that the disbursement of Rs21bn would at most amount to a
minuscule increase in the obligations of the federal government. On the basis
of these briefings, the court ordered the SBP to allocate and release Rs21bn
from Account I lying under its control and management for elections in Punjab
and KP.
Report submitted by AGP
Earlier, the Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP), on behalf of
the government, submitted a two-page document to the court that outlined the
federal coalition's position on the matter. According to the document, which
Dawn.com has reviewed, the release of funds from the Federal Consolidated
Funds, which includes all revenues, loans, and repayments received by the
federal government, is subject to parliament's approval. Although the
government presented a bill seeking the release of funds, it was subsequently rejected.
The document stated that the government had fulfilled its legal obligations,
but it did not have the constitutional authority to request the State Bank of
Pakistan (SBP) to release the funds.
In a separate conversation with reporters outside the Supreme
Court (SC), the Secretary of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Umar
Hameed, revealed that the hearing was conducted in a friendly environment. He
presented the commission's position on the release of funds to the judges and
discussed the ongoing census in the country. He pointed out that after the
census is completed, four to five months are required for constituency
demarcation. Hameed stated that they are now waiting for the court to issue its
order.
Bill seeking poll funds rejected by Parliament
Yesterday, the National Assembly of the country witnessed a
significant event as it rejected a money bill that the government had presented
to seek funds for conducting polls in Punjab and KP. The Charged Sums for
General Election (Provincial Assemblies of the Punjab and the Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa) Bill 2023 was not approved by the house with a majority vote after
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar informed the members that the standing committee had
recommended against the bill he introduced on April 10.
The bill proposed that the funds needed for conducting
elections in both provinces should be "expenditure charged upon the
Federal Consolidated Fund (FCF)," which comprises all revenues received by
the federal government, all loans raised by the government, and all money
received by it in repayment of any loan. According to the bill, it would
"override other laws" and have an effect "notwithstanding
anything contained in any other law, rules, and regulations" when it was
in force.
It also mentioned that the proposed law would be repealed
once elections for both assemblies were held, and it was not necessary to hold
general elections and polls in the Sindh and Balochistan assemblies for it to
be repealed.
Supreme Court warns government of repercussions for
withholding election funds
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court summoned the AGP and
other officials to the CJP's chambers and warned that the federal government's
failure to comply with the April 4 directive regarding the release of funds for
polls could result in consequences.
The court order stated that anyone who initiates or
encourages disobedience or defiance of the court can be held accountable. The
order warned that the present disobedience could jeopardize the timely holding
of general elections mandated by the Constitution. The court emphasized that
providing funds for this critical constitutional purpose requires immediate
attention and takes precedence over proceeding against those who may have
committed contempt of the court.
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