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LAHORE, Feb 19 (APP):A Lahore High Court (LHC) division bench on Wednesday allowed an intra-court appeal, filed by the federal government, and set aside a single bench decision to remove National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) Chairman, Lieutenant General Munir Afsar, from his position.
The bench, comprising Justice Chaudhry Muhammad Iqbal and Justice Ahmed Nadeem Arshad, heard the federal government’s appeal and announced the verdict, following completion of arguments by both parties.
In its appeal, the federal government argued that the single bench’s verdict, which had declared Afsar’s appointment illegal based on a petition, filed by Ashba Kamran, was contrary to the facts. It stated that the petitioner (Ashba) had challenged the appointment notification, issued by the interim government, but had never contested the newly amended rule.
The government contended that it had the authority to undertake the rule-making process under Section 44 of the NADRA Ordinance, 2000, which included the power to amend the rules. It further argued that the chairman’s appointment was made in accordance with Rule 7A of the NADRA (Appointment and Emoluments of Chairman and Members) Rules, 2020, and that when discretion is exercised, there is no obligation to issue a public advertisement or conduct a competitive recruitment process. The government urged the bench to overturn the single bench’s verdict and reinstate the NADRA chairman’s appointment.
The division bench had reinstated Lieutenant General Munir Afsar as the NADRA chairman after suspending the single bench’s decision on September 10, 2024.
A single bench, comprising Justice Asim Hafeez, had declared the appointment of NADRA chairman unlawful on September 6, 2024.