Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday blamed Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for the 22-month delay in the execution of the Orange Line Metro Train (OLMT) project, shortly after the Supreme Court allowed the provincial government to continue with the project.
The chief minister, while speaking to media in Lahore, termed the apex court’s decision a victory for his administration, and said it was not just for Punjab but for all Pakistanis.
The apex court took up the case earlier in the day and dismissed the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) decision to halt the construction of the mass transit project near 11 heritage sites in the city, conditionally allowing the Punjab government to carry on with the $1.2 billion project.
The court, however, ordered the formation of a committee under a retired judge to oversee the impact of the project on the affected heritage sites.
“The PTI had submitted an application with the Supreme Court. Then, as hidden enemies strike, they did the same by approaching the Lahore High Court against this public welfare project. The revenge they have taken is not from me. They have exacted revenge on the poor people of this city,” said Shehbaz, adding, “Our political opponents travel in big lavish cars and buy aircraft by looting public money and have no knowledge of Pakistan’s goals.”
“They [PTI] are criminals of the public and the masses will never forgive them for their crimes,” the CM said, recalling that through their dirty politics they had hurt the country in the past as well.
“Despite the passage of four-and-a-half years, no development project for the masses has surfaced in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa… how these people [PTI-led provincial government] will face the voters in 2018 elections,” he wondered.
The chief minister said that the project was to be inaugurated on Dec 25 according to the original plan. Asked when the project would be operational, Shehbaz said he would inform of the date at a later date.
He elaborated that the Lahore High Court (LHC) had a stay order on the project for 14 months and the apex court announced its verdict eight months later.
Shehbaz said the PTI did not want the people to benefit from an efficient and cheap mass transit system.
“The project was to run from Dec 25, now, due to the delay we are absolutely out of line.”
Criticising the opposition party further, Shehbaz said they had been unable to even lay a brick for the metro project in Peshawar after a passage of four and a half years.
Shehbaz said if the project had been built on time, it would have lessened thousands of cars on the road and could have led to less severe smog in the provincial capital. “The tickets for the metro project would be reasonable and the price would be set keeping the common man in mind.”
The apex court had accepted the appeal of the Punjab government and others against the LHC decision with conditions and ruled by a 4-1 judgment that it observed no illegalities in the multi-billion rupee project.
A five-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, had reserved its verdict in the case on April 17 this year.
Although the apex court has allowed the Punjab government to go ahead with the project at the same speed, the bench has set 31 conditions to ensure the project’s transparency.
The conditions include strict monitoring of the construction as well as a dedicated trial period before train operations begin; placement of high-tech devices and hiring of expert monitors to ensure vibrations from the construction don’t damage the heritage sites and various measures for the beautification and restoration of the sites.
A Rs100 million fund will also be established by the government to maintain the heritage sites, according to the court order.