Bureaucrats’ promotions: IHC reserves verdict

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad High Court on Monday reserved judgment in a federation intra-court appeal (ICA) challenging decision of a single-judge bench, which declared recent promotions carried out by the Central Services Board (CSB) void.

The division bench comprising Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb reserved the verdict after hearing the rebuttal by Additional Attorney General regarding promotion of bureaucrats from BPS-18 to BPS-20.

In July, 2015, Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui had set aside promotions of bureaucrats with directions to federal government to revise the promotion policy criteria and reconsider the promotions of those officers whose names were deferred in the CSB meeting.

Justice Siddiqui had also declared that entire process carried out by the CSB on the basis of a formula was illegal.

Some 60 bureaucrats had assailed the recommendations of the CSB and formula through which promotions were awarded, while calling it as a “controversial” formula.

The government has prayed before the court to set aside the order issued against the promotions of hundreds of civil servants.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 5^th, 2016.