PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has temporarily stoppedtheanti-corruptionestablishment from actingagainst a former director general (health services)in connection with an ongoing inquiry into alleged corruption in the Timergara Medical College project.

A bench consisting of JusticeMohammad Naeem Anwar and Justice Ijaz Khan issued notices to the ACE director, its Lower Dir circle officer and the district`s deputy commissioner, giving them a fortnight`s time to file comments on former DG Shaukat Ali`s petition against that inquiry against him.

It fixed the next hearing for Feb 11 and directed the ACE not to take any `adverse action` against the petitioner until then.

The petitioner claimed that the health department and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had already conducted inquiries into the matter and found nothing objectionable in the project, so the holding of af r e s h inquiry by theACE was illegal and unconstitutional.

He requested the court to declare illegalaletter of Jan1, 2025, sent by the ACE`s circle officer to the TMC principal, seeking all college records, and minutes of a meeting convened by Lower Dir`s DC on Dec 16, 2024, wherein it was decided to revisit matters related to the college.

Advocate Hazrat Bilal appeared for the petitioner and said when his client was serving as the district health officer in Lower Dir in 2016, he was also assigned the responsibility of the TMC`s project director.

He added that significant developments were made towards the completion of the project after he had taken overthe charge of project director and due to his exemplary performance, he was also entrusted with the additional charge of chief executive officer of the college in 2022.

The lawyer said after receiving a series of anonymous complaints, the then health secretary had constituted a fact-finding committee on April 17, 2023, to examine the allegations of irregularities about the project.

He claimed that the committee meticulously examined all records and concluded that all procedures related to land acquisition, staff appointments and procurement were carried out in compliance with laws and prescribed guidelines.

`Despite that fact-finding inquiry, the NAB also took cog-nisance of the matter and initiated a fresh inquiry against TMC officials, including the petitioner, over the allegations of corruption and corrupt practices, misuse of authority in purchase of 340 kanals of land for the TMC Colony and DHQ hospital, irregularities in procurement of equipment, and illegal appointments,` he said.

The counsel added that after careful consideration of evidence and facts, the inquiry was formally closed by the NAB on Aug 8, 2024.

He claimed that since the formation of the current provincial government, the petitioner had been subjected to significant adversity and unwarranted hardships.

The lawyer said recently, hisclient learned that on Dec 16, 2024, the Lower Dir`s deputy commissioner convened a meeting that decided to revisit matters, which had already been thoroughly examined by the health department and NAB.

He claimed that acting on the explicit instructions of adviser to the chief minister retired Brigadier Musadiq Abbasi and ACE director, the circle officer issued the impugned letter on Jan 7, directing the TMC principal to produce all records pertaining to the college.

`Subjecting my client to multiple inquiries is a clear violation of Article 13 of the Constitution, which prohibits prosecution for the same offence more than once,` he said.