The Lahore High Court on Tuesday issued contempt notice to Chairman National Highways Authority (NHA) in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging legality of M1 Harro Service Area contract to IMEX Associates.
Earlier the Court has restrained the IMEX from further construction on the site till final decision of the matter in hand in response to petition of Niaz Muhammad, a citizen who frequently commutes on M-1. Over non-observance of the Court directives the Court issued contempt notice to the NHA chairman in the case.
The NHA has been alleged to award the contract of operation and maintenance of the Service Area on Islamabad Peshawar Motorway in violation of the PPRA Rules. Appearing before a single-member bench of the Justice Anwar Hussain in the Lahore High Court Rawalpindi Bench in the matter, counsel for the petitioner Advocate Umer Ijaz Gilani made a shocking disclosure that as per confirmed record that NHA had awarded the contract worth billions of rupees to a wound up company.
At the outset, Advocate Umer Gilani made a shocking disclosure before the Court while submitting an official letter of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan where it has been confirmed that IMEX Associates is a defunct company.
A copy of the letter available with TLTP reads as, “ IMEX Associates (Pvt.) limited has filed an application on November 03, 2020 for striking off the Company under Companies (Easy Exit) Regulations, 2014 read with Section 426 of the Companies Act, 2017”.
The counsel urged the Court to place this information on record saying “if a company has filed for winding up application during 2020, under which grounds the NHA has awarded it a 15year public procurement contract in 2022”?
After hearing counsel for the parties, the Court allowed the petitioner’s application for placing the SECP letter on the judicial records. Taking note of the significance of the document now placed on the record, the counsel for IMEX sought further time to argue. In a related development, the Court has issued contempt notice to Chairman NHA for violation of its earlier stay order in this case.
In October 17, 2022 as in a 5-page detailed order that Justice Jawad Hassan authored where status quo was issued in the matter. The petitioner has alleged that both IMEX and NHA blatantly violated the said order.
It is pertinent to mention that through the PIL a citizen Niaz Muhammad has assailed the NHA award of M1 Harro Service Area contract to IMEX Associates terming the contract awarded in a shady and rigged procurement process. Later, the Bench adjourned hearing till second week of December.
