Islamabad, 14 June 2025: Pay Pensioners this was the clear message from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) as it penalized a private bank for continuously stalling proceedings in a long-pending pension case.
Justice Babar Sattar, while hearing the matter, imposed a fine of Rs. 150,000 on the bank for its repeated requests to adjourn hearings without valid justification.
The two-page written verdict, issued by the court, directs the bank to transfer the penalty amount to the affected pensioners within two weeks.
The move came after the bank’s legal team once again submitted a written request for adjournment, citing their involvement in proceedings before the Supreme Court a reason the court found insufficient.
Earlier, on June 27, 2024, the IHC had already fined the bank Rs. 50,000 for similar delay tactics. However, according to the petitioners’ counsel, the bank failed to comply with that payment order.
In response, the court added a further Rs. 100,000 to the penalty, bringing the total to Rs. 150,000, reinforcing its message to Pay Pensioners in both letter and spirit.
In its prior order dated June 24, the court had explicitly warned the bank to ensure its counsel presents arguments during the next hearing. The ruling also made it clear that failure to do so would result in ex parte (one-sided) proceedings.
Despite this directive, the bank once again sought to postpone the hearing through a written application, prompting the court to enforce the enhanced fine and re-emphasize that the Chief Legal Officer must personally appear and argue the case at the next hearing.
Reiterating its earlier stance to Pay Pensioners, the court concluded that if the private bank’s representative fails to provide arguments at the next scheduled session, it will proceed with unilateral action in accordance with its June 27 directive.
The court has now postponed further proceedings until August 27, giving the bank one final opportunity to meet its legal obligations.
