Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Monday questioned what the three chief ministers of Balochistan who governed over the province in the last four years did for the welfare of people during their time.
Summoning the ministers, Justice Nisar said, “They should come here and explain what they did for the people of the province.”
The comments came during a hearing at the Supreme Court’s Quetta Registry regarding the state of hospitals in Balochistan. A three-judge bench headed by Justice Nisar and comprising of Justice Sajjad Ali Shah and Justice Mansoor Ali is taking up cases of public interest in the province.
Provincial chief secretary, secretary of health and secretary education appeared before the court for the hearing of their cases.
CJP questions how young doctors are still on strike
Hearing a case regarding the state of hospitals in Balochistan, Justice Nisar asked how young doctors across the province are still on strike despite court orders barring them from doing so.
“Who is providing treatment to patients while doctors are on strike?” the CJP questioned.
Provincial Health Secretary Saleh Muhammad Nasser told the CJP that no one is treating patients while the young doctors are on strike.
“There is no private hospital in Balochistan, only one medical college,” the provincial health secretary said.
“The government is set to inaugurate three medical colleges soon,” he added.
The outpatient departments (OPD) of government hospitals across Balochistan were closed today for a fourth day as young doctors continued their strike.
The young doctors had called a strike in March to demand hiring on vacant seats, payment of allowances and provision of new machines at medical facilities.
They paused their protest when the government promised to fulfil their demand upon the return of Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudus Bizenjo.
However, when neither their demands were fulfilled nor a notification issued despite the chief minister’s return, the doctors resumed their strike from Friday.
Tour of hospitals
Questioning the provincial health secretary regarding the state of hospitals, the CJP said, "We have issued a SOP in this regard."
Stating that Balochistan is "extremely important", Justice Nisar said, "I want to tour some hospitals."
Later during the day, the CJP visited Civil Hospital Quetta.
CJP orders medical colleges to refund fee above Rs856,000
The CJP said they're looking into whether private medical colleges are being run as businesses. "Some private medical colleges charge a fee of over Rs2 million and we're aiming to return the amount to 20 million students."
Justice Nisar ordered private medical colleges to refund students any fee they charged above Rs856,000.
