PCB chairperson appointment case: Najam Sethi removed from post, AG tells SC

AG adds that PM also stopped interim management committee from working, formed a new governing board.

ISLAMABAD: In order to hold fresh elections to elect a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairperson, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has removed Najam Sethi as head of the board, Attorney General for Pakistan Salman Aslam Butt told the Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday.

Express News reported that a two-member bench, comprising Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali and Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, heard a case regarding the restoration of Zaka Ashraf as PCB head.

During today's hearing, Butt said that the prime minister has also stopped the PCB Interim Management Committee from working and formed a new governing board.

The attorney general added that Justice (retd) Jamshed Ali Shah was appointed as the acting PCB chairperson and also the election commissioner for the PCB elections, which will be held within the next 30 days.

Sethi confirmed this on his Twitter account and added that he has been nominated by the prime minister as eligible to contest the elections for the post of PCB chairperson.

I have been nominated by PM as member of PCB Board of Governors eligible to contest election to post of Chairman.

— Najam Sethi (@najamsethi) July 10, 2014

PM has promulgated new PCB constitution, appointed Justice (r) Jamshed Shah as acting Chairman/Election Comm to hold elections in 30 days.

— Najam Sethi (@najamsethi) July 10, 2014

Since May 2013, the PCB chairpersons have been removed and reinstated seven times.

The latest twist is seen as an attempt by the government to get Sethi elected and all the previous court cases annulled.

But the game of musical chairs has stained Pakistan's cricketing image worldwide and the frequent changes have prompted derision among the national and international media.

Jamshed Ali Shah, a retired judge in the Pakistan judiciary who has worked with the PCB as head of its integrity committee, told media he will perform day-to-day duties.

"I will implement the new PCB constitution and focus on holding the elections as per my responsibility," Shah told reporters.

Government submits new copy of PCB constitution

The federal government has submitted a copy of PCB’s new constitution, as well as a July 10 notification regarding the removal of PCB’s management committee headed by PCB chairman Najam Sethi.

According to the notification, former SC judge Jamshed Ali Shah has been appointed as election commissioner to hold the election of the PCB chairmanship.

As per Article 7(2) of the new constitution of the PCB, the election commissioner shall take over as chairman PCB and shall ensure the conduct of elections within 30 days from the date of assumption of the office of  PCB chairman.

BoG members nominated

Attorney General for Pakistan Salman Aslam Butt on Thursday submitted the notification which says that Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, who is patron-in-chief of PCB, has nominated Sethi and Iqbal Umar as members of the Board of Governors (BoG).

On the other hand, during the hearing of the case related to the appeal of the Inter-Provincial Ccoordination (IPC) ministry, Imtiaz Rashid Siddiqui, counsel for former PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf, has raised objections over the nomination of Sethi as member of the BoG.

Similarly, the two-judge bench of the apex court headed by Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, has also expressed concern over the use of prime minister’s discretionary power to nominate Sethi as member of the BoG.

The bench asked Advocate General of Pakistan (AGP) to consult the premier regarding the removal of his name from PCB BoG and inform in this regard today (Friday).

Eligibility of PCB chairman

Meanwhile, according to the new PCB constitution, the president will be elected for three years as he can be re-elected for one further term.

A special meeting of the BoG shall be convened to elect the chairman from amongst the members of the boards of governors by a majority of the total voting membership of the BoG. During the interim period, the power of day-to-day management of the board shall vest in the election commissioner.

In order for a person to be eligible to be elected to the office of chairman, the individual should be a holder of at least a bachelor’s degree or an equivalent professional degree or higher from a local university or college recognised by the Pakistan Higher Education Commission.

No person shall be elected or hold the office of chairman, if he is not a citizen of Pakistan or ceases to be a citizen of Pakistan or he has been convicted in an offence involving moral turpitude, and sentenced for such an offence with imprisonment of either description for a term exceeding two years for any offence under the National Accountability Bureau 1999.

If the person is dismissed from the service of any government job, then he cannot be elected for this post.  The new constitution says that the chairman shall be assisted by the Chief Operating Officer, who will be appointed on his recommendation.

Composition of Board of Governors

There shall be a board of governors, comprising a chairman and four members being duly elected representatives of the regions on basis of rotation. There are a total of 16 regions.

Four members being representatives of Service Organisations or Departments as per applicable regulations to be nominated by the relevant Service Organisation or Department. Two members will be nominated by the prime minister in his discretion. The term of members of the BoG shall be three years.

For the first elections of the BoG, four representatives’ members of the regions shall be from top four finishing teams of the latest Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Tournament.

At least one meeting of the BoG shall be convened by the chairman as for as possible in every quarter of a calendar.

About the financial management of the board, the chief financial officer shall prepare the budget estimates of the board in respect of each financial year.

Regarding the resolution of disputes or appeals, the Board shall maintain a panel for resolution of disputes, hearing of appeals against orders of the Board or officials or committees. The panel of adjudicators shall consist of former judges of the SC and the high courts or persons of good repute qualified to be a judge of the apex court or high court.

Dissolution of the BoG and removal of chairman

If the prime minister, after such inquiry as he deems fit, is of the opinion that the chairman has committed or has failed to prevent commission of grave financial irregularities determined to the interest of boards or fails to perform function efficiently. The prime minister is bound to give reasons in writing regarding the removal of PCB chairman.

The All Regional Cricket Association shall adopt the model constitution provided by the Board and replace their respective constitution within three months from the date of communication of the model constitution made by the Board.