The government and the Supreme Court (SC) are on a collision course. Well, so as it seems. The situation is getting messier with each passing day as the Shehbaz Sharif-led setup appears to be in no mood to abide by the apex court’s decision. After the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) informed the SC that the government was not releasing the Rs 21 billion required for conducting elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on May 14, the apex court directed the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to release the funds and send an “appropriate communication” to the finance ministry by April 17.
In its order, the Supreme Court said: “The sum of Rs21bn shall be and become available to and with the election commission in immediately releasable and utilisable funds to hold the general elections to the Punjab and KP assemblies.” It also ordered that necessary funds should immediately be given to the ECP and that too “within a matter of a day”.
The ECP had been asked in the April 4 verdict announced by the three-member SC bench comprising Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar, to inform the court in case it did not receive funds within the given deadline. In a one-page report, the ECP informed the court about the government’s reluctance to release funds for holding elections. The court, therefore, issued notices to the finance secretary, SBP governor, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Awan as well as the ECP authorities, directing them to appear before the judges’ chamber on April 14. It also directed the State Bank to submit details of all monies of the federal government that lies with the bank.
Therefore, Attorney General Mansoor Awan, State Bank Deputy Governor Sima Kamil, finance secretary and ECP officials appeared before the bench and informed it about the government’s failure to release Rs21 billion in funds. After getting a detailed briefing from the relevant officials, the three-member bench observed: “In our view, on an assessment of the presentations made by the State Bank and the Finance Ministry/Division, there can be no doubt that the Rs21bn requires by the commission and ordered to be made available in terms of para 5 of the [April 4] order can be done immediately and within a matter of the day.” The bench also sought a compliance report from the finance ministry by April 18 and asked the Election Commission to submit a report that it had received Rs21 billion.
Earlier, the AGP had submitted a document to the court on behalf of the government, detailing its stance on the matter. As per the document, the release of funds from the Federal Consolidated Funds was subject to the parliament’s approval. The government had presented a bill in the parliament seeking the funds’ release but it was rejected. Therefore, the government was not authorised to ask the State Bank to release the funds under the Constitution. On the other hand, the Supreme Court warned the federal government of the consequences if it failed to comply with the directives regarding the release of funds. With both the executive and the judiciary adamant in their stances, the situation is getting more and more complicated. The country has been on its toes for months now. Who would come out the winner in this confrontation and what would be the outcome, it’s hard to analyse, but one knows who the loser is – Pakistan. The year 2023 will be remembered in the country’s history as a dark chapter.
