Mehar Badshah v. Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

On October 24, 2024, the Supreme Court of Pakistan disposed of a monitoring matter arising from a petition concerning the illegal cutting of 218 shisham trees. The Court addressed the broader decline in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's forest cover and stated that deforestation contributes to landslides and flooding, reduces the sequestration of greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels, and exacerbates climate change in a country highly vulnerable to its effects. The Court had required the provincial government to report on the Forest Department's budget, staffing, authorized and illegal timber cutting, reforestation measures, and forest-cover measurement for the preceding five years. The order applied Article 9A of the Constitution, inserted three days earlier, which recognizes a right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. It also reiterated that Article 9's right to life had already been interpreted to encompass a sustainable environment. After government counsel committed to promote and implement sustainable environmental practices, the Court disposed of the matter on those terms.