LHC directs PPSC to admit transgender person’s job application

Earlier, petitioner’s application had been rejected by depts over gender conflict

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court (LHC) has ordered the Punjab Higher Education Department (HED) and the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) to accept the application of a transgender person to appear in the competitive exam for the post of lecturer.

In the past, PPSC had rejected the application of the transgender person identified as Faizullah based on gender requirements outlined by Punjab HED.

In response Faizullah had filed a petition through Advocate Syed Ali Hassaan Zaidi challenging an impugned order wherein her application for appearing in PPSC exams for the post of Urdu Lecturer Female (BS 17) was dismissed on grounds of gender requisition stated by HED that only males or females could apply for the post.

Petitioner Faizullah had challenged the rejection contending before the court that her Masters degree in Urdu qualifies her for the said post. She also highlighted that she was currently pursuing MPhil in Urdu language.

The petitioner told the court that she had applied for the post of lecturer that was published by the PPSC on August 23, 2020 however her application was rejected on unconstitutional grounds. Faizullah said she then applied online for the post of Urdu Lecturer Female (BS-17) but her application was again rejected.

Dejected, she submitted an application in LHC with PPSC as respondent requesting them to accept her job application and allow her to take the recruitment test but it was turned down by Director Recruitment-I PPSC on October 29, 2020 on grounds of strict gender requirement of only male or female person.

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The petitioner then approached the court to set aside the impugned order and give directions to the concerned quarters to admit her application for the post.

The defence counsel argued that the impugned order and advertisement infringed on the fundamental rights guaranteed to the petitioner under articles 4, 9, 14, 18, 25, 27, 33, 37 and 38 of the constitution of Pakistan.

As the proceedings commenced on Wednesday, the counsel representing PPSC said that the commission has no objection in admitting the petitioner’s application if the HED allows them to do so.

Later, point section officer of HED assured the court that they are admitting the application of the petitioner for the post by adding her name in the women’s category after which LHC Justice Faisal Zaman Khan disposed of the petition.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 4^th, 2021.