The LHC directed the finance secy to ensure payments from March 1. PHOTO: FILE
The finance secretary on Friday told the court that the government was willing to give 20 per cent instead of 50 per cent judicial allowance to court staff, to which Lahore High Court Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial then directed the government to pay the allowance from March 1.
Secretary Jahanzaib Khan told the court that it would be hard for the government to give 50 per cent judicial allowance at this time. He said he could only offer 20 per cent. He said the rest would be paid after the next budget. The court then adjourned hearing for an indefinite period and directed the secretary to make sure that the 20 per cent allowance was paid to court staff.
Abdul Malik, a subordinate court worker in Lahore, and Sakhawat Ali of Faisalabad had petitioned the court seeking judicial allowance. They said that employees of the lower courts performed duties similar to employees of the LHC establishment, but were not extended benefits that the latter were entitled to. They said special judicial allowance and utility allowance was given to judges of the district judiciary and LHC staff, but not to employees of the lower courts. They said they were entitled to be treated like the LHC staff in accordance with the spirit of Article 4 of the Constitution.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 5th, 2014.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ