PHC stays freezing of free power units to Pesco employees

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday stayed the caretaker federal government’s decision of freezing the monetized cost of free electricity units to employees of Peshawar Electric Supply Company and issued directions to the government and Pesco to submit replies.

The stay order was issued by the PHC single bench comprising Justice Dr Khurshid Iqbal while hearing the writ petitions of Kashif Farhan and other Pesco officers.

Qazi Jawad Ihsanullah Qureshi, counsel for the petitioners, informed the court that his clients were officers of various scales and were performing their duties in Pesco.

He pleaded that the caretaker federal government had frozen the monetized cost of free electricity units to employees of Pesco on December 5 last.

He said that free power units were not an additional amount or perks and privileges for the employees but they were included in the terms and conditions at the time of their recruitment.

He said that various officers were entitled to different reference numbers of free power units and the government also used to deduct income tax from them as per the allowed free electricity units.

The lawyer said that a caretaker government cannot take such a big decision to alter set rules and regulation for employees, as its prime job was to hold free and fair elections.

He also argued that the caretaker federal government’s decision of freezing the monetized cost of free electricity units to employees had not yet been approved by the Pesco Board of directors, which was not liable to be implemented on the employees.

He requested the court to stop the caretaker federal government from implementing the decision.

It may be mentioned that the federal government had canceled free electricity units for employees of distribution companies (DISCOs), generation companies (GENCOs), and the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA).

The Power Division had recently said in a notification that the federal cabinet had approved monetization of free electricity units available to WAPDA and ex-WAPDA employees, including DISCOs, GENCOs, National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) and Power Information Technology Company (PITC).

Accordingly, all in-service employees in Grade-17 and above will pay their electricity bills issued by respective DISCOs against the reference numbers already assigned to them.

According to reference numbers, employees who are allowed 450 units per month will get an allowance of Rs15,858 per month, while those in GENCOs who are allowed 650 units will be paid Rs24,570.

Employees of DISCOs and WAPDA who are eligible for free 600 units per month would be paid Rs21,996, while those getting free 700 units would be paid Rs26,460 per month.

Grade-19 staff entitled to 880 units per month will be paid Rs37,594, while those who are entitled to 1,000 units will be paid Rs42,720.

Employees entitled to 1,100 units each month would now receive Rs46,992, while Grade-21 personnel entitled to 1,300 units would be compensated with a hefty allowance of Rs55,536.