Can acting governor make tenure appointments?
The petition challenges legality of the Acting Governor’s actions in making ‘appointments of a permanent nature’.
LAHORE:
A five-member full bench of the Lahore High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing for further arguments till Wednesday (today) in a petition challenging the appointment of the Provincial Services Tribunal chairman and the Provincial Ombudsman made by the Punjab Assembly speaker in 2008 as Acting Governor of the province.
The petition filed by Aurangzeb Burki, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) finance secretary, challenges legality of the Acting Governor’s actions in making ‘appointments of a permanent nature’. The petitioner alleges that both the ombudsman and the PST chairman were appointed in a clandestine manner during Eid Holidays in 2008.
Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, the petitioner’s counsel, who was arguing his case on Tuesday, will continue his arguments on Wednesday. The hearing was adjourned till Wednesday due to paucity of time.
The petitioner’s counsel asked the court to define the ambit, scope of powers and authority of Governor in accordance with Article 101 and those of Acting Governor in accordance with Article 104 of the Constitution.
The counsel highlighted the provisions of Article 261 and the definition clause relating to Governor in Article 260.
The petition was moved in December 2008. Since then the parliament has approved the 18th Constitutional amendment, which has clarified that in the absence of Governor, speaker of the relevant Provincial Assembly will hold the office.
The petitioner has contended that the Punjab governor went abroad on a three-day personal visit and the President of Pakistan appointed the PA Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal as acting governor.
He submitted that the post of Acting Governor was created to deal with the absence of the Governor.
The nature of the job, he said, was a ‘stopgap arrangement’ to perform the day-to-day functions of the government.
So far as the policy matters and appointments to key posts in the province were concerned, the Acting Governor was not authorised.
The petitioner said Rana Iqbal had overstepped his mandate during his brief stint as Acting Governor and made “illegal and unauthorised” appointments, including those of Justice (retired) Jahangir Arshad as chairman of the Services Tribunal and Khalid Mehmood as the provincial Ombudsman.
The PPP leader said these appointments amounted to use of the power “not vested” in the him. He prayed to the court to declare the appointments unconstitutional and void.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 22nd, 2010.
A five-member full bench of the Lahore High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing for further arguments till Wednesday (today) in a petition challenging the appointment of the Provincial Services Tribunal chairman and the Provincial Ombudsman made by the Punjab Assembly speaker in 2008 as Acting Governor of the province.
The petition filed by Aurangzeb Burki, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) finance secretary, challenges legality of the Acting Governor’s actions in making ‘appointments of a permanent nature’. The petitioner alleges that both the ombudsman and the PST chairman were appointed in a clandestine manner during Eid Holidays in 2008.
Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, the petitioner’s counsel, who was arguing his case on Tuesday, will continue his arguments on Wednesday. The hearing was adjourned till Wednesday due to paucity of time.
The petitioner’s counsel asked the court to define the ambit, scope of powers and authority of Governor in accordance with Article 101 and those of Acting Governor in accordance with Article 104 of the Constitution.
The counsel highlighted the provisions of Article 261 and the definition clause relating to Governor in Article 260.
The petition was moved in December 2008. Since then the parliament has approved the 18th Constitutional amendment, which has clarified that in the absence of Governor, speaker of the relevant Provincial Assembly will hold the office.
The petitioner has contended that the Punjab governor went abroad on a three-day personal visit and the President of Pakistan appointed the PA Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal as acting governor.
He submitted that the post of Acting Governor was created to deal with the absence of the Governor.
The nature of the job, he said, was a ‘stopgap arrangement’ to perform the day-to-day functions of the government.
So far as the policy matters and appointments to key posts in the province were concerned, the Acting Governor was not authorised.
The petitioner said Rana Iqbal had overstepped his mandate during his brief stint as Acting Governor and made “illegal and unauthorised” appointments, including those of Justice (retired) Jahangir Arshad as chairman of the Services Tribunal and Khalid Mehmood as the provincial Ombudsman.
The PPP leader said these appointments amounted to use of the power “not vested” in the him. He prayed to the court to declare the appointments unconstitutional and void.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 22nd, 2010.