AJK SC upholds AJK HC’s verdict; directs govt to frame rules for appointing DGs sans political partisanship

MIRPUR (AJK): Dec 16 (APP): The Supreme Court of Azad Jammu and Kashmir dismissed different appeals filed by the AJK government, challenging the AJK High Court verdict, and directed them to ‘frame the rules’ for the appointment of Chairmen and Director Generals of the development authorities in whole of Azad Jammu Kashmir.

It is pertinent to mention that the AJK High Court in September had directed the incumbent government to frame rules within a period of next two months in the light of the judgment of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in a case titled Khawaja Muhammad Asif v/s Federation of Pakistan delivered in 2013.

The high court verdict came in the wake of a petition, filed in August, challenging the appointment of Amir Jaleel as Chairman of Pearl Development Authority (PDA) Rawalakot.

The learned full bench of the Supreme Court of Azad Jammu Kashmir categorically ordered in its judgment announced on Thursday as saying, “In this state of affairs, no other option left with the court except to declare all the appointments of the heads of the Development Authorities illegal. They shall be ceased to hold the offices immediately. The secretary law is directed to place the matter before the concerned forum for making object-oriented rules for all the posts of heads of the Development Authorities within a period of three months and till the proper rules are framed the government shall assign the charge of the Mirpur Development Authority and Development Authority Muzaffarabad to the Chief Engineers P.P.H./Highways and the charge of other Development Authorities to the Superintending Engineers P.P.H./Highways for smooth functioning of the Development Authorities. It is pertinent to mention here that for all the posts of heads of Development Authorities the objective criteria should be uniform.”

It is worth mentioning that the Supreme Court of Pakistan had declared that the Chairmen and Director General of the Development Authorities shall be appointed on experience in the development fields.

The AJK HC had declared that after two months, all the Chairmen and Director Generals of the Development Authorities will cease to hold their respective offices.

The full court of the Supreme Court of Azad Jammu Kashmir headed by Chief Justice Raja Saeed Akram and comprising judges Justice Khawaja Muhammad Nasim, Justice Raza Ali Khan and Justice Muhammad Younis Tahir observed in their unanimous order on Thursday that Chairmen and Director Generals of the Development Authorities were being appointed on political considerations only to accommodate their favorites of the governments of the time in AJK.

The learned apex court further observed that such Chairmen and Director Generals of the Development Authorities had no experience in the development fields and they only sell plots / lands in an arbitrary manner and proceeds earned on spent on salaries of the employees.

It was further laid down that the AJK Supreme Court, in a case titled Muhammad Azeem Dutt v/s Khadim Hussain had laid down the guidelines and apprised the Government and the Mirpur Development Authority (MDA) that what functions and how shall be performed by the Mirpur Development Authority, Mirpur. But neither the AJK government nor the MDA had taken into considerations the rule of law laid down in the said judgment.

The learned apex court of AJK approved the judgment delivered by the High Court of AJK and declared that the rules for appointment of Chairmen / Director Generals of the Development Authorities in AJK shall be framed in the light of the judgment of the Supreme Court of Pakistan delivered in Khawaja Asif case.

The Supreme Court upheld the orders of the AJK High Court that if the appointments of the heads of the development authorities were not made after framing the rules within a period of two months, the incumbent Director Generals / Chairmen of the Development Authorities across AJK shall cease to hold offices forthwith.