ISLAMABAD - The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has issued notices in a petition filed against appointments on the basis of “look after charge” and “acting charge” in the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP).
A single bench of IHC comprising Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri conducted hearing of the petition moved by Rustam Ali Haji, Secretary General All Pakistan NBP Officers Association (Regd.), Haji Anwar Baloch, President, All Pakistan NBP Officer’s Association, and Abdul Latif Qureshi, Chief Organizer, NBP Staff Union through their counsel Dr. G. M. Chaudhry Advocate. The IHC bench issued notices to the respondents and directed them to submit their responses before the next hearing. After issuing aforementioned directions, the court deferred the hearing for two weeks in this matter. The petitioners cited Federation of Pakistan through Prime Minister of Pakistan, Ministry of Finance through Secretary, State Bank of Pakistan through Governor and National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) through its President as respondents.
They stated in the petition that the petitioners are aggrieved by illegal acts of the Respondent No. 1, 2 and 4 regarding giving “Look After Charge,” “Additional Charge,” “re-designate” and “Acting Charge” appointments and postings of different functionaries, officers, officials and office-holders including particularly such functionaries, officers, officials and office-holders who are appointed on “Contract Basis” for a “fixed term” or “particular or special assignment basis” and during such assignments such functionaries, officers, officials and office-holders grossly misuse powers and discretions vested to such higher offices for their own interests and purposes or due to some vested interests resulting loss to public organizations as well as to the government as a whole which is also ultimately loss of general public and against the public and national interest while illegal and unconstitutional at the same time when there are no legal and constitutional provisions for such exercise of power and discretion.
They adopted that the Respondent No. 1 (federation) and 2 (Secretary Finance) are continuously committing illegalities for appointing or giving “Look After Charges” or “Acting Charges” or “Additional Charges” to different functionaries, executives or officers for the office of the President, National Bank of Pakistan, from time to time, particularly to such functionaries, executives or officers who are working on “contract basis” or on “quite junior positions” only to compel such functionaries, executives or officers, etc., to act according to their sweet will or follow their line of action instead to obey the command of the law and the Constitution only to procure short-term benefits which are linked with such higher positions which are, in fact, short-term and stop gap arrangements and generally not more than “three months.”
Therefore, they prayed to the court to declare short-term “Look After Charge,” “Current Charge,” “Acting Charge,” “redesignate,” or “Additional Charge” basis appointments or postings illegal, ultra vires and coram non judice being in violation of the National Bank of Pakistan Ordinance, 1949 and the Banks (Nationalization) Act, 1974 read with the National Bank of Pakistan Bye-laws, 2015.
They also requested that all appointments or postings on “Look After Charge,” “Current Charge,” “Acting Charge,” “redesignate” or “Additional Charge” basis including the appointments or postings made through different Orders (Annex-B) be also declared as illegal, coram non judice and ultra vires and be set aside ab initio in the interest of justice and the Respondent No. 1, 2 and 4 be restrained from making any appointment or posting on “Look After Charge,” “Current Charge,” “Acting Charge,” “redesignate” or “Additional Charge” basis except amongst the executives or officers who are the most senior in the relevant cadre working on regular basis (not contractual or re-employed) only for a non-extendable short term in the interest of justice in future.
