SC orders Shehbaz Sharif to return Rs5.5mn spent on his advertisement
The Supreme Court (SC) ordered on Thursday Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif to return Rs 5.5 million he had spent on a newspaper advertisement bearing his picture.
A three-member bench headed by the Chief Justice (CJP) Saqib Nisar took up the suo motu case in the Lahore registry regarding provincial governments spending millions on advertisement to promote their projects.
Once the hearing resumed, the CJP inquired about the cost of an advertisement put up by Shehbaz and on being informed that it had cost Rs 5.5 million, he remarked that the hefty amount could have been used for providing medicines to the people, local media reported.
The CJP was also informed by Secretary Information Punjab that in one month Rs 120 million was spent on advertisements by the provincial government.
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Ordering Shehbaz to return the money, the top court has asked the All Pakistan Newspapers Society, Punjab chief minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the Punjab government to submit their replies in the case.
During the previous hearing, the CJP has said that there were no medicines available in public hospitals and no water in state-run schools and still the provincial governments were spending taxpayers' money on massive advertisements.
He also observed whether the money spent on advertisement was pre-poll rigging. He further said the political leaders must make the payments of these advertisements through their party funds.
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