PTI challenges caretaker govt’s power for transfers, postings

PTI has challenged in the Lahore High Court (LHC) the Election Commission of Pakistan's notification which grants the caretaker government of Punjab blanket permission to transfer, post and appoint officers in Punjab without seeking prior approval from the ECP.

The petition was filed by PTI's senior vice president Fawad Ahmed Chaudhry, with the respondents being the ECP, Federation of Pakistan through their secretaries, Province Punjab through its chief secretary, Inspector General Police (IGP) Punjab, and others.

In the petition, Fawad Chaudhry requested the court to restrain the ECP from mechanically granting approval to the unwarranted large-scale requests of transfers and postings submitted by the respondent Punjab caretaker government of unless each case of transfer is examined by the ECP under the criteria laid down in section 230 of the Elections Act 2017.

The petitioner contended that on January 12, 2022, the then Punjab chief minister advised the governor of Punjab to dissolve the provincial assembly, and ultimately the Punjab assembly stood dissolved on January 14, 2023.

The ECP called upon the electors of the provincial assembly of Punjab constituencies to elect their representatives through a notification issued on March 8, announcing the elections schedule for the conduct of general elections in Punjab to be held on April 30.

This was issued in compliance with the order passed by the Supreme Court of Pakistan on March 1, in a Suo motu case on the bases of the announcement of the date by the President of Pakistan as April 30.

The ECP withdrew the election schedule on March 22, and announced the fresh date of October 8, 2023, for elections in Punjab.

The withdrawal was challenged in the Supreme Court of Pakistan, which on April 4, 2023, set aside the ECP's decision of withdrawing the election schedule and further fixed May 14, 2023, as a fresh date for elections.

The ECP also issued the requisite notification on April 5, 2023, for the remaining stages of the election programme.

In the meantime, the biased and controversial caretaker government in Punjab was taking major policy decisions and issuing unwarranted large-scale blanket orders of transfers of officers of the provincial government, autonomous bodies, authorities, public companies, and the local government without any expediency or valid justification.

This violates the provisions of section 230 of the Election Act 2017, resulting in material affecting the forthcoming general elections by advancing the interests of the political opponents of the petitioner. It also causes a huge financial burden on the public exchequer.

The large-scale transfers of the caretaker government are being mechanically approved by the ECP without checking them on the touchstone of the provisions of section 230 of the Act. In several cases, transfer orders have been issued by the caretaker government without even bothering to obtain prior approval of the ECP.

Despite the High Court suspending such unwarranted transfer orders in several cases, the illegal exercise is going on.

However, despite the substantial lapse of time, the respondents have failed to redress the petitioner's grievance. The strong and reasonable apprehension of victimization at the hands of the aforementioned controversial officers, specifically expressed through the petitioner's application to the ECP, has subsequently proven correct.

The said controversial officers have left no stone unturned to victimise the PTI, its leadership, and workers to materially affect the election by causing every possible hindrance in the conduct of the petitioner in order to give undue benefit to the PTI’s political opponents.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 9^th, 2023.