The Supreme Court has directed to initiate civil and criminal proceedings against former prime minister Raja Parvez Ashraf and others in the developmental funds case’.
The Supreme Court on Thursday declared illegal the disbursement of Rs 47 billion developmental funds by former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf in his own constituency ahead of the May general elections.
Pakistan People’s Party leader Raja Pervez Ashraf, who served as PM of Pakistan from 22 June 2012 to 16 March 2013, had issued Rs 47 billion for developmental schemes underway at his hometown, Gujjar Khan, in Punjab.
A three member bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, announced the verdict on Thursday.
Justice Chaudhry had taken a suo moto notice of the issuance of hefty amount and delivered the ruling on Thursday.
In its verdict, the court declared the fund transfer as illegal, saying that the amount was disbursed against the law and legal procedures.
It said that irregularities were found in the transfer of funds and that the former prime minister overstepped his powers while issuing Rs 47 billion for uplift schemes of his hometown.
The court said the former PM misused his powers while allocating development funds to the people of his liking.
The court directed to initiate civil and criminal proceedings against the former PM and others involved in the case
Taking into consideration the rules and regulation, release of these funds is the prerequisite, observed the court in its order.
It also instructed competent authorities to decide whether proceedings should be initiated against Raja and others accused in the case or not and also to review the funds left with the caretaker setup.
The court said the former prime minister misused his powers while allocating developmental funds to the people of his liking.
The court also ordered that any person who made feasibility reports for the fund or violated the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rules in the distribution of the fund will also be investigated.
