Suspension of monthly stipend: Artistes in KP facing financial problems

PESHAWAR: Most of the artistes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are living a miserable life as the provincial government has failed to pay the monthly stipend to them even after the court had directed to do so within 15 days.

On January 31, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) had given 15 days to the government to start paying a monthly stipend to the artistes or else face contempt of court proceedings.

“We are passing through a difficult time. Many artistes are facing financial problems. Despite the court order the provincial government has not started paying the stipend,” complained a senior artiste Ishrat Abbas. Other artistes, including Saeeda and Zar Muhammad, said they had dedicated their lives to the promotion of the art and culture but were being treated like beggars. They said that the families of most of the senior artistes were facing starvation owing to the indifferent attitude of the Directorate of Culture.

A division bench of the PHC comprising Justice Syed Afsar Shah and Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim had directed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to pay the stipend within a fortnight or else the secretaries concerned would face the contempt of court proceedings.

The bench passed the order in contempt of court petition filed by the artistes including Zulfiqar Qureshi, Ahmed Sajjad, Ishrat Abbas, Zar Mohammad and Saeeda.

They had sought implementation of the court decision passed on August 16, 2018 wherein the government had been directed to pay the monthly stipend amounting to Rs30,000 to the artistes.

It was submitted in the petition that the provincial government had approved endowment fund for artistes and started paying Rs30,000 monthly stipend to each of the 500 registered artistes.

It was pointed out that the government started paying the monthly stipend, but after two months the payment was stopped after the court’s stay order in a writ petition by some self-styled artistes. However, the PHC vacated the stay order and dismissed the writ petition. But the government has yet to restart the monthly stipend to the artistes. It was submitted in the petition that non-payment of stipend to the artistes amounted to contempt of court. Nadia, an artiste who had moved the court, said the court delivered a verdict and chief minister also ordered payment to the artistes but the Directorate of Culture was dragging its feet to implement the order of the court. She said the chief minister should direct the officials of the Directorate of Culture to release cheques for stipends to the artistes.