Petitions on pensions: SHC orders issuance of show-cause notices to KDA officials

KARACHI: Sindh High Court (SHC) has ordered to issuance of show-cause notices to sitting and former high officials of Karachi Development Authority (KDA) for misleading the court in petitions related to non-payment of pensions to the retired employees of the authority.

The court ordered to issue show cause notice to Dr. Syed Saif-ur-Rehman, former Director General KDA, Asif Ikram, former Director General KDA, Nasir Abbas Soomro, present Director General KDA, Qazi Abdul Qadir, Member Finance KDA, and Atta Abbas, Director Finance & Accounts KDA, to show cause why proceedings should not be initiated against them for deliberately and willfully disobeying the orders of this Court and not honouring the undertakings given by them before this Court; and, for not only submitting wrong amounts/figures/information before this Court, but also for deliberately and willfully suppressing and concealing this position from this court on the last two dates of hearing.

All the said persons have been directed to appear in persons on next date of hearing along with their reply to the show-cause notice, a written order of the court stated on Monday.

The court also appointed Official Assignee of the Court as Commissioner to ensure compliance of the orders of the court in letter and spirit. He shall take over the separate bank account opened by KDA in pursuance of the court's order dated 19.03.2020, and shall ensure that all proceeds realized from the sale I auction of properties, specified in the proposal submitted by KDA on 19.03.2020, are deposited in the said account and are not utilized for any purpose other than settlement of the liability of pension and other post-retirement benefits of retired employees of KDA, as directed vide order dated 19.03.2020.

The sale I auction of the properties specified in the said proposal shall be held under the supervision of the Commissioner, court declared and ruled that he shall also ensure that the remaining 90% amount of pension and other post-retirement benefits are disbursed to all retired employees on or before 31.12.2020.

In case the remaining 90% amount could not be collected or fetched and is not paid to retired employees on or before 31.12.2020 due to any reason whatsoever, salary of the present employees of KDA, starting from the top, shall be stopped without any further order of this Court and shall remained stopped till the remaining 90% amount is received by all retired employees, as already ordered on, court directed.

In such an event, the Commissioner shall also take over the salary account(s) of KDA on 01.01.2021 and shall ensure that the amount(s) lying or deposited therein is/are utilized only to settle the subject liability. It is clarified that the Commissioner shall not interfere in the day-to-day affairs of KDA or the decisions taken by KDA in relation to other than the subject liability of retired employees. All the officials of KDA are jointly and severally directed to cooperate with the learned Commissioner in all respects for implementation of this order, order stated.

The court observed that it has been claimed by KDA that 10% of the pension amount has been paid to all retired employees and directed Commissioner to ascertain whether this claim made by KDA is correct or not.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020