The head of the Naanbai Welfare Association petitioned IHC Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri.

In their petition, the Naanbai Welfare Association said that the controller general reduced the price of roti from Rs25 to Rs16 and naan from Rs30 to Rs20.

The association claimed that the relevant authorities did not consult them before making the decision. He informed the court that the decision was made without their input and that the new pricing were too low.

The district administration official informed the court that the controller of general pricing and suppliers was given the authority to determine the prices of necessary commodities such as naan and roti.

Following a legislative modification, the functions were delegated to the controller general.

Barrister Umar Aijaz Gilani, the lawyer for the Naanbai Association, argued that the controller general’s powers were not governed by Section 3 as stated in the notification.

He noted that rent and grain prices are high in Islamabad. The court queried the Islamabad district government, which was the association, about the pricing of flour before lowering the costs. “Order was passed justice to make people happy.”

Later, the court ordered a detailed answer in the matter and stayed the notification of lowering the prices of naan and roti in Islamabad until May 6.

The cash represents the second and final tranche of a $3 billion standby agreement with the IMF, which was acquired last summer to avoid a sovereign default and expires this month.

The South Asian nation is looking for a fresh, longer-term IMF loan. Pakistan’s Finance Minister, Muhammad Aurangzeb, has stated that Islamabad expects to get a staff-level agreement on the new programme by early July.

Islamabad says it wants a loan for at least three years to help with macroeconomic stability and to carry out long-overdue and painful structural reforms, but Aurangzeb has declined to specify what type of programme the country wants.

Read more: Pakistan plans to agree on the outline of a new IMF loan in May. Fin-Min Aurangzeb

Pakistan has yet to make a formal request, but the Fund and the government are already in discussions.

If secured, it will be Pakistan’s 24th IMF bailout.

The $350 billion economy is experiencing a chronic balance of payment crisis, with nearly $24 billion in debt and interest to repay over the next fiscal year – three times the amount of foreign currency reserves held by the central bank.

Pakistan’s finance ministry expects the economy to grow by 2.6% in the current fiscal year, which ends in June, while average inflation is expected to be 24%, down from 29.2% in fiscal year 2023/2024. Last May, inflation soared to a record high of 38%.

The Court also issued an order to re-vote on 12 polling stations in Chaman’s PB-51 seat.

The court returns the case to the election commission with the candidates’ assent and orders the ECP to rule within 10 days of hearing the candidates.

“Under what rule did the ECP order re-polling in 12 polling stations?” Justice Ameenuddin Khan inquired. “The election commission saw 12 polling stations and ignored others,” Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar stated.

According to Justice Ameenuddin, the election commission did not undertake any inquiries or adhere to any principles.

“Only those polling stations were checked where maximum turnout of votes pointed out in petitions,” claimed the ECP’s DG Law.

Justice Mazhar stated that the ECP should have investigated the entire constituency.

On the request of a rival candidate, Muhammad Asghar Achakzai, the election body ordered re-elections in his constituency.

The case was considered by a three-member bench of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Ameenuddin Khan.

Re-elections were ordered by the Election Commission at polling stations 56, 57, 61, 62, 79, 89, 90, 91, 95, 106, 129, and 130 in the PB-51 constituency.

In February, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Captain (retd) Abdul Khaliq Achakzai was chosen Speaker of the Balochistan Assembly without opposition.