JI files contempt plea against Nepra over loadshedding In Karachi

KARACHI: The Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) on Monday filed an application in the Sindh High Court and sought contempt proceedings against officials of the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) for not implementing an earlier court order about loadshedding in the city.

In November last year, the SHC referred the matter of loadshedding to Nepra for a decision within one month and also directed the authority to file a compliance report through an SHC member inspection team.

Citing Nepra Chairman Waseem Mukhtar and advisor to consumer affairs at its Karachi office Abid Hussain as alleged contemnors, JI Karachi chief Munim Zafar through his lawyer Usman Farooq filed a contempt application in the SHC.

The applicant submitted that while disposing of a petition about loadsheding on Nov 6, the SHC had directed Nepra to decide the matter about loadshedding within one month and file a compliance report.

Proceedings sought against power regulator for not implementing earlier court order

He also argued that despite the lapse of substantial time, no such decision or report has been furnished, constituting clear and blatant disobedience of the court’s order and such conduct of alleged contemnors amounts to obstruction in the administration of justice.

The applicant further submitted that the clear and time-bound directions of the SHC have been ignored without any lawful justification, thereby undermining the sanctity and efficacy of judicial orders.

He maintained that continued non-compliance has resulted in grave prejudice to public at large particularly the residents of Karachi as they were suffering due to persistent loadshedding amid rising temperatures and such inaction on the part of alleged contemnors warranted immediate intervention by the court through initiation of contempt proceedings.

Initially, Zafar and two other party leaders had petitioned the SHC in June 2024 and contended that the KE, responsible for electricity generation, transmission and distribution in Karachi, had been observing loadshedding for an average duration of 10 to 16 hours daily in various localities of the city.

However, the SHC had dismissed the petition for not being maintainable in November last year on the grounds that in the light of a Supreme Court order passed in October 2023 on the subject matter, the relevant forum for redressal of these grievances was Nepra, which was a specialised forum and had the necessary powers to provide an adequate and efficacious remedy.

However, it had also directed the regulatory authority to decide the matter within a month and sought a compliance report.

Meanwhile, speaking to the media persons on the premises of the SHC, the JI city chief criticised KE’s performance and was of the view that residents of the city were being subjected to prolonged outages despite paying the highest electricity tariffs and heavy taxes.

Referring to an earlier decision of Nepra handed down in April 2024, he said that the regulator had declared loadshedding illegal when based on theft and non-recovery dues and imposed a Rs50 million fine on KE and had ordered continuous supply.

However, he submitted that the power utility’s former CEO had publicly stated that the fine was paid and loadshedding would continue.

Mr Zafar also highlighted the impact of ongoing outages on students and said that ongoing matriculation examinations were being disrupted by long hours of loadsheding.

Further deploring the power utility, he submitted that the KE had recovered Rs50 billion from consumers in 2025 on the basis of past recovery claims and it was continuing to collect billions monthly under operation and maintenance charges without improving services.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2026