KARACHI – The Sindh High Court on Friday allowed Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Gauhar Tabish to submit his comments on a contempt-of-court application in the next hearing.
On behalf of the KESC CEO, Barrister Kumail Ahmed Sherazi appeared before a division bench, comprising Chief Justice Mushir Alam and Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi, and requested the court to grant his client further time to submit comments in the application moved by Syed Muhammad Iqbal Kazmi.
The petitioner said that the KESC was violating the court’s directives and not publishing the schedule for power load shedding.
He submitted that on September 30, 2009, the court had disposed of his prior constitutional petition and ordered the KESC to publish the load shedding programme beforehand at least in one leading newspaper of English, Urdu and Sindhi languages.
The court had issued the directive according to Section 24 of the Electricity Act of 1910, he added.
While the verdict was being handed down, the respondent had submitted the undertaking statement wherein the KESC had assured to comply with the court’s order and publish the load shedding schedule in leading newspapers.
The applicant said that the citizens are suffering from extended hours of load shedding, but the KESC management has completely failed to publish the schedule for power outages to facilitate the residents and the business community.
He termed the KESC CEO as the respondent and pleaded that the procedure for contempt of court be initiated against the KESC under Article 204 for not complying with the court’s order.
It was also prayed that the respondent be ordered to obey with the court’s prior directive to issue the load shedding programme.
However, the court granted the respondent’s request and ordered the KESC CEO to submit his comments on the contempt-of-court application in the next hearing, the date of which would be fixed later.
