AJK public service commission: AJK court declares appointments illegal

September 11, 2013  Azad Jammu and Kashmir High Court (AJKHC) on Tuesday declared illegal the appointment of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (PSC) Chairman Mumtaz Hussain Naqvi and its nine members.  A four-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Ghulam Mustafa Mughal and comprising Justice Tabassum Aftab Alvi, Justice Abdul Rasheed Sulehria and Justice Sardar Abdul Hameed Khan gave the verdict on a petition filed by the opposition leader in the AJK Assembly Farooq Haider Khan and senior advocate Razzaq Ahmad challenging the appointments of the commission chairman and its members.

The high court in its judgment said that the appointment of PSC chairman and its members has been made through an ordinance while making amendments in the AJK Constitution and the Public Service Commission Act 1986, damaging the credibility of the commission. The court said that the appointments made on the basis of the ordinance and actions – either financial or administrative by the commission and its members in their daily business – would not be affected by this judgment. However, after this judgment all acts of the commission would be considered illegal. “Society expects honesty, integrity and complete objectivity from the chairman and members of the commission …that must act fairly, without any pressure or influence from any quarter, unbiased and impartially so that society does not lose confidence in the commission,” reads the high court judgment.

The petitioner while talking to The Express Tribune termed the decision a “victory of justice” saying very soon Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz AJK chapter will challenge the appointments of coordinators and corruption in Jinnah Town Mirpur.  Khan said it is time to stand against the corrupt government to ensure the implementation of merit in the state. “The high constitutional trustees like the Chairman and members of the Public Service Commission must forever remain vigilant and conscious of these necessary adjuncts, but this all has been violated while making amendment in the AJK Public Service Commission Act 1986 to appoint the Chairman and its members,” the judgment stated.

Source: The Express Tribune