LAHORE - Justice Muhammad Anwarul Haq of the Lahore High Court observed Tuesday that ‘out of turn promotions’ would be decided in the light of the Supreme Court’s judgment in which such appointments and promotions had been declared as illegal.

Hearing a petition filed by D. R. R (Civil) Muhammad Akmal Khan challenging alleged out of turn appointments and promotions with Lahore High Court, the judge observed that the court would get the SC’s order implemented.

During the proceedings, Ahsan Bhoon, the counsel of the petitioner, argued that SC in its judgment had declared out of turn appointments and promotions as unlawful. He said the SC judgment had yet to be implemented.

The counsel alleged that the LHC administration was not implementing the SC’s judgment. He submitted that former chief justices through their powers appointed officials in relaxation of rules while several others had also been promoted. The counsel further said that on the previous hearing, the court had ordered the registrar office to hand over the record of ‘under question appointments and promotions’ to the petitioners but the office did not comply with the court’s orders.

At this, the court expressed dismay over non-compliance of its order and ordered the registrar office again to provide lists of such appointments to the petitioner.  The court adjourned further hearing until March 31.

Akmal Khan, the petitioner, had submitted that many officers of the court had been holding seats or posts in the leverage of Rule 26 of the LHC establishment rules. He also claimed that he had been waiting for his promotion for last nine years.

He held that some other officials were promoted who had earlier been appointed under rule 26, also alleging that appointments under rule 26 were out of turn appointments; thus their promotions had the same status. “It was a violation of SC judgments,” he added.

His counsel asked the court to stop further appointments, inductions and promotions till final disposal of the petition. He also requested the court to order the registrar to furnish details of the out-of-turn promotions.

full bench to hear PAT plea

The Lahore High Court Chief Justice Tuesday constituted a full bench to hear petition of Idara Minhajul Quran challenging order of an anti-terrorism court in which Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and others were not summoned over charges of Model Town’s killings.

A three-member bench headed by Justice Yawar Ali and comprising Justice Syed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi and Justice Abdul Sami Khan would hear the petition. On Saturday, Jawad Hamid of Idara Minhajul Quran filed a petition before the LHC and made Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Punjab CM Shehbaz Sharif, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah, MNAs including Hamza Shehbaz, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Abid Sher Ali, Ch Nisar Ali, and MNA Pervaiz Rashid, Syed Tauqeer Shah, Major (r) Azam Suleman, Rashid Mahmood and others as respondents in the petition.

The petitioner, through his counsel Rai Bashir Ahmad, filed the petition saying that he was the complainant of private complaint against Model Town incident in which 10 persons were murdered by the accused persons on active connivance, abatement, common intention and object of the respondents.

He mentioned in the petition that trial court had summoned rest of the respondents except the above said respondents over the charges of killing innocent people in Model Town.

The ATC decided to try 124 other officials including Punjab IGP Mushtaq Sukhera and former DCO Lahore Muhammad Usman in the said case, said the petitioner.

But the trial court ignored the case evidence and did not summon the 12 respondents because the PM and others were the real master-mind and abettors of the incident, he maintained.

The petitioner prayed that the ATC decision to the extent of not summoning the twelve respondents be set aside and respondents be summoned.

NAP being fully executed

in Punjab, LHC told

The National Action Plan (NAP) has been fully being executed in Punjab while government departments and personalities have also been provided foolproof security, the Lahore High court was told on Tuesday.

The interior ministry submitted a report before the court, saying that deployment of Rangers’ personnel in Punjab for last two months was the result of NAP. Earlier, Civil Society Network through its president Abdullah Malik had challenged non-implementation of NAP in Punjab. The petitioner had said that terrorists carried out their activities in different parts of Punjab but the provincial government did not bother to make any effective mechanism to fight against them.

Both federal and provincial governments had badly failed to execute NAP, he held and added that public had not been provided secure environment, right of living and right of liberty.

Giving the example of Karachi where peace was restored through the NAP, the petitioner alleged that the government was intentionally not implementing it to save its vote bank which directly or indirectly was connected with operation of rangers in Punjab.

He prayed that the authorities be ordered to execute NAP in Punjab to eradicate terrorism.

After putting the report of the interior ministry on the record of the case, Justice Aminuddin Khan directed the petitioner’s counsel to come up with his counter arguments. The court would resume hearing on April 19.