Nekokara, Cheema case: Court reserves verdict on maintainability

Retired police officers had challenged punishments dealt to two cops over sit-in performance

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday reserved its verdict on the maintainability of a petition pertaining to the sacking and suspension two top police officials.

Former inspector general of the Islamabad Police (IGP) Aftab Ahmed Cheema was suspended, and former senior superintendent of Islamabad Police (SSP) operations Mohammad Ali Nekokara was dismissed from service for failure to use force against violent protesters during last year’s sit-ins by Pakistan-Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT).

Former IGPs Iftikhar Rashid, Afzal Shigri, Tariq Pervez and Shaukat Javed, through their counsel Babar Sattar have challenged the government’s order. They have described the disciplinary actions against the two officials as illegal.

Justice Aamer Farooq of the IHC reserved the verdict after Additional Attorney General (AAG) Afnan Karim Kundi and Sattar concluded their arguments on the maintainability of the petition.

In his arguments, the AAG said that the petitioners were former government employees and were not aggrieved or directly-affected parties in the case. Kundi argued that the petition was not maintainable as the IHC was not the proper forum for the petitioners.

Kundi argued that the petition was not maintainable as it was a service matter and the petitioners should approach the Federal Services Tribunal. He then requested the court to declare the petition non-maintainable.

Sattar said that it was a matter of public interest and morale of the police force had gone down because of the government’s decisions.

He argued that the Supreme Court has already decided several matters dealing with public and private interest petitions. These persons may or may not get benefits from the case but the petition protects interests and benefits of the department and public at large.

The court reserved verdict following arguments.

On previous hearing, the PTI had submitted an application before the court for becoming a party in the same petition.

In the application, Barrister Shoaib Razzaq said that the action and the non-actions of the police officers during PTI sit-in and long march cannot be adjudged without the presence of PTI in the petition.

The role of the respondents – IGP Cheema and SSP Nekokara – cannot be fairly determined and justice cannot be properly adjudicated in the petition, Razzaq added.

In the petition, Sattar has maintained that the choice before IGP Cheema and SSP Nekokara during the sit ins was to exhibit allegiance to rule of law...or allow the interior secretary to usurp their authority subservient to the will of the political regime.

In the backdrop of the Model Town incident, Sattar stated that both the officials abided by the mandate of law, resolved to follow only legal orders, and refused to suspend professional judgment in acting to mechanically discharge any orders received from the federal government.

Even while PML-N and the political masters of the federal government might have had a partisan interest in using strong-arm measures to coerce and oust the protesters from the Red Zone and Islamabad, IG Cheema, Nekokara and the interior secretary, being servants of the state and not the PML-N, were obliged to exercise the powers under law in a fair, just and reasonable manner to uphold the rights of all citizens.

The interior secretary, foreign ministry, Establishment Division, Federal Investigation Agency director general, Cheema, and Nekokara have been made respondents in the petition.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2015.