SHC seeks arguments on maintainability of plea for judicial review of PIA affairs

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday directed the counsel for a petitioner to satisfy it about the maintainability of the petition seeking a judicial review of the affairs of the national flag-carrier for its alleged failure to provide a safe environment to the public travelling by air.

The petition has been filed after the PIA plane PK-8303 crashed in Malir on May 22, 2020, which led to the loss of scores of lives. The high court, at a previous hearing, had questioned the maintainability of the petition, keeping in view that it had no suo moto jurisdiction. The counsel for the petitioner sought time to argue on the petition as well as on the maintainability of the petition.

The Public Interest Law Association of Pakistan (Pilap) submitted in the petition that the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) had through their mismanagement and corruption visibly destroyed the aviation industry of the country without any accountability or measure of responsibility towards the people.

Pilap’s counsel submitted that the right to commute was an inalienable right of every citizen being akin to the right to life and trade, so the PIA being the national flag-carrier was obliged to render services because it was founded and funded by the state. So any failure in rendering services directly impinged upon the constitutional rights of every citizen.

The counsel stated that the majority of the families of the victims of the May 22 PIA plane crash in Karachi were impecunious and of poor financial standing, with some of them having lost their sole breadwinners, but the legal heirs of the victims were neither in a position to procure costly legal remedies nor did they possess the requisite knowledge to challenge the actions of the respondents in a court of law.

He submitted that a judicial review of the affairs of the PIA and the CAA was required because they were primarily responsible for causing a loss of millions of rupees to the national exchequer; besides, the loss of lives and properties of hundreds of passengers.

The court was requested to declare that the PIA and the CAA had failed to act diligently in accordance with the PIA Corporation (Conversion) Act 2016, the CAA Ordinance 1982 and the Civil Aviation Rules 1994 to provide the citizens of Pakistan safe, efficient, adequate, economical and properly coordinated civil air transport services and aviation activities.

The petitioners also requested the SHC to constitute a judicial commission with the mandate of placing before the court a determination on the mismanagement of the affairs of the PIA and its failure to operate and maintain commercial flight services as mandated by the PIA Corporation (Conversion) Act 2016, the CAA Ordinance 1982 and the Civil Aviation Rules 1994, with the order to the Aviation Division to place the final reports of all the accidents involving the PIA, including PK-8303, before the court.

They sought a declaration that the compensation cap of Rs5 million provided in Rule 21 of the Carriage by Air Act 2012 was discriminatory and ultra vires the constitution, with the order to the Aviation Division to review and revise the compensation limits under Rule 21 and other provisions relating to compensation under the Carriage by Air Act 2012 in line with the Montreal Convention for Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air 1999.