Court allows KP Textbook Board to proceed with printing

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Friday dismissed a petition filed against the printing of textbooks and profit-sharing agreements made in contradiction to policy.

The court lifted the stay order and allowed the KP Textbook Board to proceed with the printing of books under the said tender.The case was heard by a two-member PHC bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Faheem Wali.

The petitioners’ counsel argued that under the KP Textbook Board’s 2017 policy, advertisements were issued for textbook printing and private publishers participated in the bidding process.

It was told that following legal procedures, the books undergo review and receive a No-Objection Certificate from the Directorate of Curriculum and Teacher Education, while the Provincial Select Committee selects the best textbook.

The counsel informed the court that in 2021, the previous government introduced a single national curriculum policy under which the federal government committed to providing free textbooks to public schools.

While free books were provided for classes one to five, books for grades six to eight were sold in the market under an agreement with selected private publishers. These publishers were also bound to share profits with the KP Textbook Board.

He argued that the amended policy does not include any provision for profit-sharing, and such a move would further harm the already struggling local publishing industry.The petitioners were excluded from this process, which should have been completed through competitive bidding.

The counsel stated that the federal government issued books directly to private publishers without a bidding process and instructed relevant authorities to sign contracts with them. Initially, the government decided that the federal government would provide free books to provinces, and those books would remain the property of the provincial governments.

The counsel for the KP Textbook Board contended that the agreement being implemented under the policy was in accordance with the Constitution and the law. He emphasized that the tender was awarded on merit and no bias or favoritism was shown, adding the contract was approved by the provincial cabinet and was issued in accordance with that approval.