SC registrar gets extension till retirement

Many top spots in SC are occupied by deputationists, creating promotion hurdles for permanent staff

ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court Registrar Arbab Muhammad Arif, who is on deputation, has been granted a service extension till his retirement.

Arif, who has earned a reputation as an honest officer, was appointed on deputation in January 2016 for three years.

Sources have confirmed to The Express Tribune that his term as SC registrar has been extended till his retirement in December.

Likewise, a requisition has also been sent to the establishment division for the posting of Khawaja Daud Ahmad back to the Supreme Court. He was previously working there on deputation for three years as SC Administration additional registrar.

Administration deputy registrar Abdul Shabbir Khan Khattak is also working on deputation.

It has been witnessed that officers on deputation occupy key administrative positions at the Supreme Court, yet no programme has been arranged in the past to improve the capacity of permanent employees so they could one day be appointed to the top jobs.

During the tenure of former chief justice Saqib Nisar, Additional Registrar Judicial Muhammad Ali was transferred to Quetta, and Abdul Razzaq was given the charge in his place. Razzaq’s services were acquired from the courts in Punjab and he is not a permanent employee of the apex court. He is still working on the same post. Likewise, Muhammad Ali is performing his duty in Federal Judicial Academy (FJA).



The SC Human Rights Cell director general (DG) is also working on deputation. Another senior official on deputation is working in the HR cell. Both, however, are judicial officers.

Officers on deputation are also working in the court’s finance department.

During an informal discussion with several permanent employees of the apex court, it was learnt that the permanent staff members had become worried and demoralized due to the reduced chance of promotions. They asked that if they are not good enough, what capacity building measures have been taken by the SC administration for its permanent employees in the last three years.

The SC has been acquiring the services of Central Superior Services officers on deputation for the post of registrar ever since the retirement of Dr Faqir Hussain in 2014. Likewise, no service rules have been framed for the promotion of Federal Judicial Academy (FJA) employees.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) Member Shoaib Shaheen said if permanent employees were not eligible to perform at key posts, specialist trainers should be hired for their capacity building.



According to another senior lawyer, the post of SC registrar is very sensitive. Therefore, he said, it would better if the services of a high court or lower court judge could be acquired for the post. He added that if the SC feels that a deputationist is competent, he should be permanently absorbed in the apex court.

The lawyer said the hiring of civil servants after every three years would not send a good message to the public as thousands of employees had been repatriated to their parent departments due to the SC’s interference.

PBC Vice Chairman Kamran Murtaza said the superior bars had already discouraged the trend of hiring civil servants in the apex court on deputation.

Legal experts urged Chief justice of Pakistan Asif Saeed Khosa to conduct programmes for the capacity building of permanent employees as it has been seen that the SC registrar slot has been held by officers on deputation for many years.

They also urged the CJP to have an independent audit firm to carry out an audit of expenditure on the renovation of the SC building over the last three years.