PHC moved against BRT Peshawar

PESHAWAR: A leader of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) has challenged the Rapid Bus Transit (BRT) project in the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Saturday terming it illegal.

Maulana Amanullah Haqqani, a former provincial minister in the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal government and leader of JUI-F, has moved the PHC against the BRT, which was inaugurated by Chief Minister Pervez Khattak on Thursday.

The JUI-F leader in his writ petition said that the project would add to the burden of loan on a common resident of Peshawar and the province.

“The BRT project on the very face of it is illegal, without lawful authority and no legal effects for want of the legal formalities. Besides, the present government is left with only a few months and legally and logically it cannot be permitted to start such a mega project that will become a liability for the next government,” Maulana Amanullah Haqqani stated in the writ petition filed against the provincial government and concerned departments. He also added that the project lacked legal approval.

He pointed out that the project was illegal because the procedural formalities given in Article 120 and 125 of the Constitution were not followed.

He argued that the removal of installations of the Peshawar Electric Supply Company, Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited and other departments were not included in the project estimate and the government would bear the expenses.

“Even before the PC-I, the final design was prepared that is technically wrong. Besides, it would not cost less than Rs70 billion against the amount being mentioned by the government,” stated the JUI-F leader.

He added that there were a number of technical and legal flaws in the project as draft design was not prepared and the final design was made.

Maulana Haqqani said that no technical audit of the project was done which was a requirement for undertaking such projects.

He further pointed out that the project director of the BRT lacked basic qualification and there were serious allegations of corruption against him.

Maulana Amanullah Haqqani claimed that Punjab government was bearing Rs1.8 billion subsidy for 70 buses but the KP government had not mentioned any subsidy. 

The government has launched the project that is to cost Rs48 billion to provide modern public transport facility to the residents of the city.

The BRT will start from Chamkani and pass through different bazaars in city, Saddar and University Road and end in Hayatabad.

As many as 300 buses will be purchased for the project. The government claimed that the project would complete in six to nine months, but many fear it would take longer.