A petition has been filed in the Lahore High Court challenging the personal promotion of Maryam Nawaz, the Chief Minister of Punjab, on newly introduced electric buses. The petition, submitted by the opposition leader of the Punjab Assembly, Ahmad Khan, argues that the display of her photographs on the buses constitutes personal advertising at the expense of public funds.
Justice Farooq Haider presided over the court hearing and has requested responses from the Chief Secretary of Punjab and the Director-General of Public Relations (DGPR) regarding the allegations. The petition claims that the Punjab government used taxpayer money to purchase the electric buses and then promoted the Chief Minister by displaying her image, which the petitioners argue is a violation of a Supreme Court decision against using public resources for personal promotion.
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The opposition has urged the court to take contempt of court action against those responsible and demanded that the costs associated with these promotional activities be recovered. Additionally, the petition calls for the removal of Maryam Nawaz’s promotional material from the buses.
This controversy comes as the Punjab government rolls out its new trackless electric bus system, part of a broader public transport initiative known as Automated Rapid Transit (ART). The system, which operates on solar power, aims to modernise public transit in Punjab, starting with cities like Lahore, Faisalabad, and Gujranwala.
