PESHAWAR — The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has dismissed six separate petitions challenging the provincial government’s decision to outsource 24 public sector hospitals under a public-private partnership model.
A two-judge bench comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Fazal Jamshed ruled that the judiciary cannot interfere in state policy matters provided they remain within the parameters of the Constitution and prevailing laws.
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Petitioners Fear Exclusion of Impoverished Strata
The legal challenges, filed by petitioners including Jamal Nasir and Noman Yusuf, expressed severe reservations over the administrative transition structured by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Foundation. The applicants argued that the strategic outsourcing of government hospitals in KP would jeopardize public welfare.
“This administrative shift risks depriving poor and marginalized communities of their constitutional right to affordable and free healthcare access.”
— Petitioners’ Legal Argument
Conversely, legal counsels representing the provincial government and the KP Health Foundation strongly defended the structural reform. They clarified that the initiative does not constitute privatization. Under the agreed framework, ownership and regulatory oversight of the facilities will remain strictly with the state. Furthermore, free medical treatments and standardized healthcare services will continue to be provided to patients at official government rates.
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High Court Reaffirms Executive Domain Over Policy Making
In its detailed written judgment, the bench reaffirmed the established legal precedent regarding the separation of powers. The court noted that superior courts consistently avoid intervening when evaluating the legality of the outsourcing of government hospitals in KP, as it falls squarely within the policy domain of the executive.
The bench evaluated that policymaking involves complex variables, specialized technical expertise, and resource management constraints that fall under the executive’s mandate. Consequently, because the outsourcing strategy does not violate any statutory provisions, the court dismissed all six petitions as legally non-maintainable.
