KESC faces contempt-of-court charge

KARACHI – A contempt-of-court application was filed in the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday against the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) for allegedly ignoring court order regarding informing the consumers of the power load shedding schedule in advance. The application, moved by Syed Muhammad Iqbal Kazmi under article 204, stated that the respondent has ignored the court’s order to inform the consumers about the load shedding programme through advertisements and pleaded that contempt-of-court proceedings be initiated against the KESC.
The petitioner submitted that the court on September 30, 2009 had disposed of his prior constitutional petition issuing order to the KESC to make maximum efforts for publication of the load shedding programme in at least one leading newspaper of English, Urdu and Sindhi languages. The respondent had submitted its undertaking statement, assuring to follow the court’s order. However, the people are facing 16-hour long power outages on daily basis, but the KESC has failed to publish or chalk out the load shedding schedule to facilitate not only the citizens but also the business community.
Kazmi pleaded that KESC CEO Tabish Gohar should be bound to follow the court’s prior order and issue load shedding schedules. A separate petition, filed by Syed Mehmood Akthar Naqvi, accused that the City District Government Karachi (CDGK) and other authorities concerned were adopting delaying tactics regarding completion of developmental projects in the Malir City areas. The applicant prayed that the developmental projects in Malir City initiated by the CDGK under the Karachi Mega City Programme must be completed.
The plaintiff stated that due to frequent traffic jams in Malir 15 and other parts of the town, the federal government had finalised a plan to construct two bridges with one in Malir 15 and another at Malir Halt. “The development projects in Malir City would not complete due to disputes among the authorities, as the CDGK and federal government authorities have not reached any conclusion over the construction of bridges and roads,” he stated.