ISLAMABAD Jan 26 : The Supreme Court on Wednesday summoned existing and former chief secretaries of Balochistan in Reko Diq gold and copper mines case along with record of the agreement. The court also rejected an application by the Tethyan Copper Company for deferring the hearing of the case.
A four-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and comprising Justice Muhammad Sair Ali, Justice Ghulam Rabbani and Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday is hearing petitions against the leasing of the Reko Diq gold and copper mines in Balochistan.
As the bench began hearing, former Amir of Jamaat-e-Islami Balochistan Maulana Abdul Haq’s counsel submitted that gold and copper reserves were found in Balochistan in 1992 at several places when a geological survey of Balochistan’s was carried out. The counsel Raza Kazim said the federal or provincial governments cannot go beyond their powers. He said under the 2002 contract, foreign companies can work in Pakistan with the participation of local companies but no foreign company can be given exclusive rights for mining. The court summoned the record of license given to BHP Company in 1992.
The SC bench on Wednesday ordered the concerned parties to produce fundamental documents and the record of the contract before the court.
The bench on Tuesday accepted the miscellaneous application of 26 senators for becoming parties in the pending petitions against the leasing of the Reko Diq mines in Balochistan. Senator Azam Khan Swati, along with Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haidri, Dr Mohammad Ismail Buledi and others had pleaded to become party in the case.
Khalid Anwar, who appeared for Tethyan, requested for adjournment of the case for two weeks. He pleaded that a wrong impression has been created about the Tethyan agreement which the court rejected saying that it is important to continue the hearing of the case. Later the hearing was adjourned till today (Thursday).
A four-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and comprising Justice Muhammad Sair Ali, Justice Ghulam Rabbani and Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday is hearing petitions against the leasing of the Reko Diq gold and copper mines in Balochistan.
As the bench began hearing, former Amir of Jamaat-e-Islami Balochistan Maulana Abdul Haq’s counsel submitted that gold and copper reserves were found in Balochistan in 1992 at several places when a geological survey of Balochistan’s was carried out. The counsel Raza Kazim said the federal or provincial governments cannot go beyond their powers. He said under the 2002 contract, foreign companies can work in Pakistan with the participation of local companies but no foreign company can be given exclusive rights for mining. The court summoned the record of license given to BHP Company in 1992.
The SC bench on Wednesday ordered the concerned parties to produce fundamental documents and the record of the contract before the court.
The bench on Tuesday accepted the miscellaneous application of 26 senators for becoming parties in the pending petitions against the leasing of the Reko Diq mines in Balochistan. Senator Azam Khan Swati, along with Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haidri, Dr Mohammad Ismail Buledi and others had pleaded to become party in the case.
Khalid Anwar, who appeared for Tethyan, requested for adjournment of the case for two weeks. He pleaded that a wrong impression has been created about the Tethyan agreement which the court rejected saying that it is important to continue the hearing of the case. Later the hearing was adjourned till today (Thursday).
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