The Lahore High Court Lahore has issued judgment on 27-05-2014 of the case No. R.A No.39 of 2013 regarding Big City Allowance. The case is of the Government of the Punjab verses Anjum Shaheen, which was dismissed by the honourable court. Some points of this decision are as under:

Respondent filed a constitutional petition (W.P No. 2645 of 2011) asserting that his case is covered under Notification dated 8^th August 2002 issued by the Government of Punjab, the said Notification provides that Big City Allowance is payable to the employees of the cities falling within a definition of big cities. Respondent filed a number of applications with the petitioner Government for the Grant of Big City Allowance claiming that he is the eligible person for the same but the respondent’s applications remained unattended. The petitioners/respondents appeared through Provincial Advocate General Punjab and raised number of objections that the Big City Allowance is directly related to the terms and conditions of the service and as such the constitutional petition is hit by Article 212 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan   (1973). The respondent/petitioner is performing duties in a school situated outside the municipal limits of Lahore whereas as per policy the Big City Allowance is admissible to the employees of the following cities:

• Lahore
• Faisalabad
• Rawalpindi
• Multan
• Sargodha
• Dera Ghazi Khan
• Bahawalpur
• Gujranwala
• Sialkot

The third argument of the learned law officer is that the Big City Allowance is payable to the nine big cities within the old limits of the city.  For ready reference the notification dated 29^th March 2008 is reproduced as under:

I am directed to refer to the above mentioned subject and to say that Big City Allowance (i.e House Rent Allowance @ 45% of the initial pay and Conveyance Allowance is/was admissible to the employees posted in the offices/institutions within the old municipal limits of 9 big cities i.e Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Multan, Sargodha, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur, Gujranwala and Sialkot. This policy has not been changed after devolution.

Hence the benefit of Big City Allowance will remain admissible as was pre-devolution. No new offices/institutions other than those already entitled to BCA have been extended the said benefit after devolution.

The impugned Notification is on behalf of the Finance Department and the Gazette Notification dated 29-06-2005 has been issued by the Governor of the Punjab and as such the Notification by the Finance Department will not override the Notification issued by the Governor of the Punjab being the executive head of the Government of the Punjab.  The Notification dated 29-06-2005 issued by the Governor of the Punjab defines the boundaries of Lahore and adamantly the respondent is performing his duties within the boundaries of Lahore which itself is a big city and it is nowhere mentioned in the Notification ibid that there are two cities of Lahore, one is comprising of old municipal limits and other is comprising of towns detailed in Notification of the dated 29-06-2005.

The upshot of the above discussion is that this review petition fails and dismissed.