PHC lifts stay on use of Block Allocation Fund

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has withdrawn the stay order previously issued against the provincial government’s allocation of funds under the Umbrella Scheme (Block Allocation Fund).

The fund was challenged by opposition members of the provincial assembly for allegedly being discriminatory. The case was heard by a two-member bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Muhammad Faheem Wali.

In their petition, opposition MPAs, including Arbab Waseem, argued that the provincial government had allocated a substantial amount under the Block Allocation Fund, which was entirely at the discretion of the chief minister. They contended that opposition members were being ignored in this allocation process, with funds distributed based on favoritism.

The petitioners’ lawyers maintained that such a Block Allocation Fund was unconstitutional, claiming the government used it to launch selective and politically motivated development projects.

They argued that high courts had previously discouraged such discretionary funds, labeling them discriminatory and illegal.The lawyers questioned the role of deputy commissioners, stating that while the government claimed they would identify schemes in their respective districts, in practice, they were bound to follow the chief minister’s directives. They demanded that the scheme be declared null and void.

On behalf of the provincial government, Additional Advocate General Adnan Ali told the court that the Block Allocation Fund was being utilized under established rules and guidelines.He informed the bench that in the 2024-25 Annual Development Programme, only four new schemes were introduced-one of which had already been dropped-while the remaining were from 2018 and 2021.

The additional advocate general said funds were allocated only for those projects that had approved PC-1 or concept papers. He noted that the Supreme Court had upheld the 2021 guidelines related to the fund.

He emphasized that funds were not given based on favoritism or to any specific member, but rather in view of the importance of the projects, adding due to the court’s interim stay order over the past six months, the funds could not be released, and with the new budget approaching, the stay order should be lifted.