ISLAMABAD: The administration of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has suspended its four officers for insubordination and leaking an audit report to the media that said, “not a single appointment (in the administration) has been made on merit”.
Additional registrar Ijaz Ahmed, deputy registrar Mohammad Sarfraz Sharif, assistant accounts officer Mohammad Ashiq and assistant Mohammad Waseem Khan had been charge sheeted on January 22 and have since been issued final showcause notices.
They were sidelined after the damaging report, prepared by the Accountant General of Pakistan Revenue (AGPR) in August last year, appeared in the press.
That triggered lawsuits challenging 74 appointments made in the IHC administration since January 2011 as illegal.
The IHC abstained from ruling on the challenges, saying the matter is pending in the Supreme Court.
AGPR’s audit report observed that the procedure of advertising the vacancies and filling them through open competition, after conducting tests/interviews, was “totally ignored in all the appointments”.
IHC administration’s charge sheets said that Mr Ijaz Ahmed “while posted as additional registrar (establishment) had opposed the appointments of certain officers/officials made by the Hon’ble former Chief Justice in this Hon’ble Court…..thus you challenged the authority of the Hon’ble Chief Justice and are guilty of insubordination”.
It also found the additional registrar at fault for living in a Category-I government house in sector F-6/3.
“Despite the fact, and your knowledge, that the Hon’ble Chief Justice and the Hon’ble Judges have no accommodation and are living in rented houses, you have not handed over this house to them and thus you are guilty of misconduct”.
Similarly, other charge sheets accused the suspended officials of “having deep-rooted relations with a certain group of media who is biggest opponent of this establishment, who with your connivance published false stories regarding the Islamabad High Court, and a group of journalists is visiting you frequently”.
They also accused them of not obeying the order for issuing appreciation letters to the “human rights cell” and saying, in a dissenting note in derogatory language that ‘issuance of appreciation letter would amount to showering blessings’.
“Thus, you flagrantly refused to obey the order of the competent authority and are guilty of insubordination and misconduct.”
In his written statement to the authorised inquiry officer, District and Sessions Judge Ateequr Rehman, Mr Ijaz Ahmad had said that he formed his opinions on the matter in the light of various judgments of the Supreme Court, which, under Article 189 of the Constitution, are binding on all organisations including the high courts.
Accordingly, during the process of recruitments in the IHC, he highlighted that the vacant posts should be advertised in the press.
His statement also claimed that majority of the controversial appointments were made while the authorised inquiry officer was the IHC registrar.