MIAN DAWOOD
LAHORE - In an instant case of a political appointment by Punjab Chief Minister in sheer violation of the merit, the provincial law officer has asked the Lahore High Court to give immunity to Shahbaz Sharif as the court has no powers to call any CM under Article 248 of the Constitution of the Pakistan.
The stance of the Punjab government resembles the federal government’s position in the case against President Asif Ali Zardari before the Supreme Court.
Punjab Advocate General Ashtar Ausaf sought the immunity for the CM in a case wherein Shahbaz Sharif had approved a summary giving promotion to a sanitary supervisor of BPS-5 as Sports Officer in a grade 15 job usually given to one having a MA degree in Physical Education.
Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan had ordered so many times the provincial government to file a reply regarding the promotion of Sports Officer Tariq Sohail Butt, who was also a secretary general of PML-N of PP-139. But, as usual the government was not responding to the court queries. Meanwhile, the court had observed that it wanted to hear the Punjab’s Khadam-e-Aala before giving decision on this political appointment in violation of rules and regulations.
The court previously had summoned AG Ashtar Ausaf to assist the bench on the point that whether it had powers and authority to summon the Punjab CM in the LHC. During the course of hearing, Ashtar Ausaf asked the court to give immunity to Shahbaz Sharif because under Article 248, the court could not summon the CM of any province.
Article 248 (1) says: “The President, a Governor, the Prime Minister, a Federal Minister, a Minister of State, the Chief Minister and a Provincial Minister shall not he answerable to any court for the exercise of powers and performance of functions of their respective offices or for any act done or purported to be done in the exercise of those powers and performance of those functions.”
“Even, the chief minister has not been made party in this case then how can the court summon him, therefore, the petition is not maintainable and should be dismissed,” Ausaf tried to convince Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan.
At this, petitioner Javaid Iqbal Bhatti’s counsel requested the court to allow filing an amended petition making the CM party in the petition.
Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan accepted his request and adjourned hearing for one week. The petitioner contended that the summary had been approved by CM on the advice made by the then secretary local government and community development (LG&CD) on July 18, 2011 for promotion of a Sanitary Supervisor Tariq Sohail Butt alias Tara Butt s/o Zubair Ahmad to grade-15 from grade 5. He pleaded that Tara Butt was also a PML-N general secretary of PP-139, a constituency of PML-N MPA Khawaja Imran Nazir and MNA Bilal Yaseen. The petitioner submitted that the promotion of Tariq Butt was done under the political influence while the promotion from BS-5 to BS-15 was also absolutely illegal and unlawful. He submitted that no applications were invited by the authorities concerned to fill the post of Sports Officer.
He alleged that Tariq Sohail Butt’s nameplate was also installed at a school situated at Corporation Colony, Chohan Road, Islampura and a case had also been registered by Islampura police station involving Mr Tariq in gambling.
The petitioner requested the court to declare the said promotion to grad-15 from grade-5 as illegal and unconstitutional.