SHC moved against use of PPP leaders’ pictures in govt ads

A petition has been filed in the Sindh High Court (SHC) seeking to restrain the Pakistan People’s Party-led provincial government from using photographs of party leaders, living or deceased, in government advertisements.

Petitioners Nazim Haji and Syed Mureed Ali Shah on Wednesday submitted in the petition that the provincial government in order to sponsor and illegally benefit the ruling party has been displaying pictures of its leaders in governments advertisements published in various newspapers.

The petitioners observed that the advertising was done with the sole motive to promote the political party’s leaders in the eyes of the innocent general public for political, electoral and monetary gain.

They submitted that this kind of advertising carried out with the public’s money to advance political and personal status of the political party’s leaders was discriminatory to other political parties and citizens of Pakistan who have been directly and adversely affected from the commission of such offences.

As per the petitioners, the objective behind highlighting such issues was not only to advance a sense of vigilance among the people of Pakistan against unlawful activities, but also to assist statutory organisations and corruption watchdogs such as the National Accountability Bureau so that public’s looted money can be recovered in the interest of the country.

The information department was unceasingly publishing advertisements in various newspapers showing pictures of unofficial persons using national money despite the fact that public funds cannot be spent for the personal promotion or political advantage of a party, the petitioners maintained.

Furthermore, the petitioners also cited NAB’s reference filed against former information minister and others for misusing public funds in the name of government’s awareness campaign advertisements.

They maintained that in the garb of communicating with the people, in many instances, undue political advantage and mileage is sought to be achieved by glorifying individuals and crediting them as being solely responsible for various government achievements and progressive plans. The petitioners stated that such practices have become rampant as the country advances towards the next general election. Such advertisements not only result in gross wastage of public funds but also constitute misusing governmental powers, besides derogating the fundamental rights of a large section of the citizens as guaranteed under the Constitution.

The court was requested to restrain the information department and its officers from misusing, wasting of public funds on government advertisements with the intention to project provincial ruling political party of Sindh’s living and deceased leaders.

The petitioner’s also requested the court to declare impugned government advertisement showing the photographs as illegal and ultra vires under  Articles 4, 25 and 218(3) of the Constitution of Pakistan.

They also sought constitution of a judicial commission and or direction to NAB to probe into the allocation, distribution and utilisation of funds worth billions of rupees for the government advertisements published in print and electronic media from 2013 till date, and recover public funds used in such advertisements.

The matter was fixed before SHC’s division bench headed by Chief Justice Ahmed Ali M Sheikh who referred the matter to the concerned bench for hearing.