IHC stops key Hajj posting till Jan 11

Court issues notices to Ministry of Religious Affairs, concerned parties for Jan 11

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has ordered to stop the process of the appointment of the Hajj DG and issued a stay order in this regard till the next hearing on January 11.

Grade 20 officer Saima Saba had filed her application for her appointment as DG Hajj.

Earlier, a single bench of the IHC comprising Justice Babar Sattar had dismissed Saima’s plea declaring it inadmissible. The applicant, in her appeal, contended that she was one of the two candidates who had passed the test for the said position among the 48 contestants, adding that she had acquired 71 out of 100 marks.

Subsequently, Saima maintained that she had a “very good interview” and that she answered every question “correctly”.

The applicant said she was told that she had not qualified, adding that she was “disqualified on the basis of gender”.

She requested the court to hear the recording of her interview and declare the single bench’s decision null and void, saying stopping the appointment process on the basis of gender was a “violation of the rights as mentioned in the Constitution”.

Later, a division bench of the IHC led by Chief Justice Aamer Farooq issued directions to the Ministry of Religious Affairs to stop the process of appointment of the DG Hajj.

The court issued notice to the religious affairs ministry and other parties for January 11.