Gilgit:
The main court of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) prevented Wednesday for the federal people to appoint a regional advisor in the territory, observing that the matter requires a detailed hearing.
The order occurred in response to a petition presented by the Gilgit-Baltistan Defense Forum (GBAF), a civil society platform, which challenged the extension of the federal law to GB when the region had already legislated on the subject.
The forum argued that the protection against the harassment of women in the Law of the Labor Place, 2013, approved by the GB Assembly, provided the necessary framework, however, no provincial people had been designated in the last 12 years.
Despite the repeated efforts to involve political leadership and the National Commission on Women’s Status, the forum said their concerns were ignored, which caused the court to be moved. The lawyer Muhammad Luqman, who represented the petitioners, presented arguments before a divisional bank that subsequently admitted the regular hearing case and issued a court order against the appointment.
Calling the “encouraging” decision, the forum said the ruling would strengthen public trust in the integrity of the Provincial Legislative Assembly and empower local laws. “This is a milestone for the protection of human rights and regional autonomy in legislation,” said spokesman Rubilee Hunzai, expressing his gratitude to his lawyer for pursuing the Pro Bono case.
