LAHORE - The Lahore High Court on Friday sought detailed reply from Secretary Shrine of Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) on a contempt petition moved by Ahmad Afaq Qureshi for not restoring his services as deputy director of Baba Guru Nanak University despite court orders.
Justice Aatir Mahmood directed the secretary to file reply till next date, August 29.
Earlier, Secretary Shrine Khalid Ali appeared before the court and submitted that Ahmad Afaq was appointed in 2009 for a project in the university on contract basis.
Now the project had been finished after which his services had also been ended, the secretary told the court. He added the project was finished owing to an EBOI corruption case pending in the Supreme Court.
He requested the court to allow some time to defend the case as his counsel was not available.
The petitioner’s counsel Barrister Masooma Bookhari told the court that the respondents using delaying tactics to prolong the case. She argued that the federal cabinet had in 2011 ordered to regularize the services of 61 employees of the ETPB.
However, the board regularised the services of only four employees while the remaining employees were ignored deliberately, she pointed out.
She added the petitioner’s promotion and restoration case didn’t have any connection with the EOBI case as it purely belonged to land dispute with Defence housing authority.
Barrister Masooma Bookhari also pointed out that ETPB had also stopped salaries of dozens of employees since April of this year.
The court heard arguments and adjourned further hearing till August 29.
In the contempt petition, Ahmad Afaq Qureshi had submitted that the court had suspended the termination of Deputy Director of Baba Guru Nanak University of Nankana Sahib. When the petitioner reached at the university, the administration didn’t allow him to assume the charge, he said. He added the act of administration was a sheer violation of court orders.
The petitioner requested the court to initiate contempt of court proceedings against ETPB Secretary and direct the officials concerned to allow him to perform his duties besides making his post as permanent.