Contempt of court: LHC lets IG off hook, gives him 7 days

LAHORE: Chief Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed of the Lahore High Court on Wednesday warned Inspector General (IG) of Punjab Police Haji Habibur Rehman that he had seven days to comply with the court’s order for the promotion of several DSP rank officers, failing which he would be served a show cause notice for contempt. A day earlier, the chief justice had threatened to indict the IG for contempt on Wednesday. Petitioner Saleem Sadiq had asked that the court’s orders for the promotion of him and other DSPs, now a year old, be implemented. This was later turned into a contempt plea against the IG. The chief justice disposed of the contempt plea on Wednesday, but continued with criticism of the police and other government departments for not following court orders. He noted that it had been a year since the court had ordered the police to grant the DSPs their due promotions, yet it had not been done. The court’s decisions were not general statements to be ignored, but orders that government departments were bound to comply with, he said. Rehman appeared before the court on Wednesday and apologised for the delay. He said that he could not even imagine violating the court’s orders.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10^th, 2012.