An official residence remains occupied and an arrest warrant temporarily held at bay as the legal battle over provincial authority unfolds in Peshawar. According to the Express Tribune, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) suspended a government notice ordering inactive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Deputy Speaker Suraiya Bibi to vacate her official residence, while also barring law-enforcement agencies from arresting her.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Faheem Wali issued the written order following arguments from the petitioner's counsel, Advocate Yasir Khattak, and the Advocate General, as reported by the Express Tribune.
According to the Express Tribune, the court noted in its detailed order that the relevant presidential ordinance and the administrative directive requiring the vacation of official residences contain no mention of the constitutional posts of Speaker or Deputy Speaker. The judges found sufficient grounds to stay the eviction process pending further examination.
The Express Tribune reported that the petitioner's counsel contended that the K-P Assembly Speaker and Deputy Speaker Act 2026 confers a clear legal right to occupy the official residence for the duration of the term, and bars coercive action by law-enforcement agencies while the office-holder remains in position. Conversely, the Advocate General submitted to the court that an emergency empowers the provincial government to reclaim official residences allotted to ministers, advisers, and the Deputy Speaker, according to the Express Tribune.
Background
According to the Express Tribune, the legal dispute arose after the provincial government issued an administrative directive requiring the vacation of official residences. Furthermore, the Advocate General apprised the court that a criminal case under Section 406 of the Pakistan Penal Code has already been registered against the Deputy Speaker on the complaint of the Deputy Commissioner of Chitral.
Why it matters
This ruling provides immediate relief to the inactive Deputy Speaker, according to the Express Tribune, and places the burden on provincial authorities to justify their eviction drive in light of statutory protections available to constitutional office-holders. For ordinary readers, the case highlights the ongoing intersection between administrative emergency powers and statutory job protections for elected officials under provincial law.
What's next
The Express Tribune reported that the matter will be taken up again on the next date of hearing for further examination of the legal position.