ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Monday restored Syed Mustafain Kazmi to his post as Member Planning and Design Administration at the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
Chief Justice IHC Justice Muhammad Anwar Khan Kasi suspended the notification related to the removal of Kazmi as Member (P&D) CDA. The court also issued notices to Establishment Division, Cabinet Division and Chairman CDA and later adjourned the hearing.
Syed Mustafain Kazmi approached the court through his counsel Hafiz Arfat Ahmad Advocate and maintained in his petition that he was appointed as Member (P&D) on March 5 of this year after 29 years of his services for the CDA. He contended that he was removed from his post on August 15 and an officer Wasim Khan, who was chief metropolitan planner at Lahore Development Authority (LDA), was appointed on the said post on deputation. Kazmi maintained that his removal from the post is violation of his basic rights.
In his petition, he also alleged that Wasim Khan enjoyed good nexus with the incumbent government and he was appointed on this post on deputation on political basis. He further informed the court that out of total seven members of CDA Board, only two are regular while the remaining five are deputationists. Syed was of the view that appointment of officials on deputation in CDA is equal to interference in the affairs of an autonomous body. He also argued that appointments, transfers and dismissals should not be on political basis and in this connection, he referred the verdict of Supreme Court of Pakistan in Anita Turab case.
Therefore, he requested the court to declare his removal as null and void and send the deputationist officer Waseem Khan to his parent department.
Meanwhile, the same court also issued notices to Capital Development Authority (CDA) and Inspector General (IG) police Islamabad in a petition moved against the presence of offices of political parties and business activities in the buildings constructed on the residential plots.–Staff Reporter