P&D Ministry submits reply in petition for CPEC’s western route

PESHAWAR: The Ministry of Planning and Development on Tuesday submitted a written reply in the Peshawar High Court (PHC) in a petition, seeking directions for the federal government to develop the western route of the CPEC along with the execution of several other development projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

When a division bench comprising Chief Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Ijaz Anwar started hearing in the writ petition, Additional Attorney General of Pakistan Manzoor Khalil informed the bench that the Ministry of Planning and Development had submitted written reply about the CPEC.

The court adjourned the case after the petitioner’s lawyer Qazi Muhammad Anwar sought some time for examining the written reply. In a previous hearing, the court had directed the federal government to verify the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister’s claim about the inclusion of certain developmental projects in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), including trade and western routes related to the province.

The court was hearing a writ petition filed by Speaker KP Assembly Asad Qaiser, seeking direction for the federal government to develop the western route of the CPEC along with the execution of several other development projects in the province.