PHC stays GIDC arrears recovery until next order

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Monday stayed the Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) arrears recovery from industrial units and Compressed Natural Gas stations of the province through monthly bills till next order.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Muhammad Ibrahim Khan and Justice Ijaz Anwar restrained the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) from collecting the GIDC arrears through monthly gas bills from CNG stations and industrial units of the province till next order.

The bench passed the directions in two identical writ petitions filed by All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) and CNGs stations through their lawyers Shumail Ahmad Butt and Esaac Ali Qazi.

The bench issued notice to Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), SNGPL and federal government through Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas to submit reply on next hearing. During hearing, the lawyers submitted that the provisions of GIDC Act, 2015 are not “self-executing provisions” and thus cannot be given effect without necessary subordinate legislation in shape of Rules.

The lawyers contended that the federal government is imposing the cess without framing rules under the law. The lawyers prayed before the court to stop the SNGPL from recovery of the GIDC arrears in monthly bills till framing of the rules under the law as the present recovery is against the law and illegal.

Furthermore, it was submitted that to date the “time of payment” has not been prescribed and since there is nothing prescribed that GIDC payment is to be made monthly and not otherwise (such as annually, biannually or in any other recurring interval), therefore charging the same monthly in the monthly consumption bills is absolutely unwarranted and thus not maintainable in the eyes of law.

The lawyers pointed out that the impugned demand of GIDC arrears and its inclusion in the monthly gas consumption bill, both are in violation of the law, which the respondents are trying to implement.

They said even otherwise, nowhere in the GIDC Act, 2015, it is either mandated or provided that in case of any default or non-payment of GIDC for any reason, the gas utility company can make any recourse to disconnection of gas supply or treat the arrears of GIDC as arrears of gas consumption bill and thus make recourse to coercive measure including but not limited to disconnection of gas supply, encashment of bank guarantees or curtailing the supply or load in any manner.

They said the GIDC Act, 2015 didn’t authorise the respondents to charge any Late Payment Surcharge (LPS), therefore the demand of LPS for GIDC arrears was absolutely illegal, unlawful, without lawful authority and thus of no legal effect.

It was submitted that the impugned demands of GIDC arrears without necessary mechanics and machinery clauses appear to have been suffering from incurable defects and incorrigible illegalities. It said that the impugned demand suffers from administrative highhandedness and questionable exercise of powers.