The Supreme Court (SC), on Tuesday, announced its decision to extend its stay order over Peshawar High Court’s (PHC) ruling in Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, Peshawar.
The court has expressed its displeasure over continuous delays and mismanagement of the Peshawar BRT project. Justice Umer Ata Bandial heard the case and stated that the government cannot claim to be above reproach in the BRT project case.
Questions will be asked if the money is wasted. People’s money should be used carefully,” he noted.
The extension comes in the case that was filed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government against the ruling of Peshawar High Court which in December, last year directed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to conduct a detailed inquiry about 35 different points in the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project.
PHC, in its ruling in Peshawar BRT case, had questioned if there was any need to obtain huge loans for the project. They also questioned as to why the project was pushed for approval without proper feasibility.
In response the KP government then moved to the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) to challenge the PHC ruling, claiming that the SC had already stopped NAB from investigating the BRT Project and hence the case cannot be reopened.
The BRT Peshawar Project has been marred with corruption and mismanagement charges. Several completion deadlines have been issued in the past. While poor planning and multiple changes in the design and routes have contributed to its delay and an exponential increase in its development cost.
