KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday said any laxity by banks in collection of donations for Dam Funds will tantamount to contempt of court.
“The apex court of the country [Supreme Court of Pakistan] is monitoring progress in the matter of donations to the Fund. Any laxity by banks or their staff at branches will attract penal action and may also tantamount to contempt of court,” the SBP said.
The banks are therefore, advised to ensure meticulous compliance of above instructions and extend full cooperation to donors in deposit of their donations/contributions, the SBP added.
The central bank said that in a recent hearing of the subject case, the Honorable Supreme Court of Pakistan has observed that there are complaints that banks are not accepting donations from people contributing to the Dam Fund, and are also not actively facilitating donors in remittance of the funds stuck abroad.
In order to address the issues being faced by donors, banks are advised to ensure that the arrangements made for collection of donations and contributions to the Dam Fund shall remain in place at every bank branch on an ongoing basis; requiring all concerned to provide necessary support and facilitation to donors.
The banks are further directed to ask their overseas branches to facilitate the donors in depositing and remittance of donations to the Fund in accordance with the legal and regulatory framework of concerned jurisdiction.
The banks shall display SBP’s helpline number and email address on their websites and branch notice boards for lodging of complaints by donors if they face any difficulty in depositing and contributing to the Fund.
