‘Merit ignored’: Govt barred from hiring new primary teachers

Petitioner complains govt changed appointment criteria.

PESHAWAR:

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has barred the provincial government from appointing new teachers who hold the Primary Teachers Certificate (PTC) till further notice.

Chief Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel and Justice Muhammad Daud imposed the ban on Tuesday while hearing a petition filed by Muhammad Iqbal Amin through his counsel Muhammad Ijaz Sabi.

The lawyer told the court the education department advertised various posts for PTC holders on March 20, 2012. Three months later, the department issued another advertisement stating applicants who have studied science subjects will be awarded five extra points in the appointment process.



According to Sabi, many applicants approached the high court against this decision, and through three different orders, the PHC directed the government to appoint teachers as per the rules mentioned in the first advertisement.

“The government did not follow the court’s order and later out of 128 sanctioned posts for teachers in Peshawar only 26 were filled. In these appointments, merit was ignored,” Sabi told the bench.

He said the government has ignored all applicants who topped the merit list under the criteria set in the first advertisement. “Now, it also wants new candidates to pass National Testing Service (NTS) exams to qualify for appointment which is against the court’s order,” Sabi contended.

If cases against the health and education department are separated from all cases pending in the high court, its pendency would reduce because most cases are filed against these two departments, remarked Justice Miankhel.

The high court then imposed a ban on new appointments of PTC teachers across the province till its next order. Director schools and executive district officer (education) were directed to appear in court at the next hearing.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 4^th, 2015.