Ban on transfers, postings of secretaries lifted by Supreme Court

The Supreme Court (SC) on Saturday directed the chief secretary to pick officers of his choice and submit a timeframe for resolving issues relating to non-availability of potable drinking water and worsening sanitation conditions in Sindh.

The SC vacated its earlier stay against the transfer and posting of secretaries of different provincial government departments; however, the apex court’s five-judge larger bench—headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar—continued the stay against transfer or posting of the provincial chief secretary till further orders.

It is important to note that these directives came during an unusual hearing at the SC’s Karachi Registry, as judicial work is ordinarily done in the courtrooms in the country’s superior courts on Saturday.

Justice Nisar remarked: “Provision of clean drinking water is the responsibility of the Sindh government. We want to make it clear to the provincial government that the Supreme Court also has the power of contempt of court order proceedings to use.”

The bench also comprised justices Umar Ata Bandial, Faisal Arab, Ijazul Ahsan and Sajjad Ali.

Justice Nisar noted that the court-appointed judicial commission had highlighted problems relating to the supply of contaminated drinking water and poor sanitation conditions and their causes.

The provincial government had not objected to the commission’s findings, he said, adding that Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah was summoned to give a timeframe to resolve these problems.

“Toxic industrial waste was being dumped into freshwater sources such as canals and rivers in the province, and the same was being supplied to the people for drinking,” he observed.

The tankers mafia was thriving because of the scarcity of drinking water in the city, he said.

The chief justice told Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) Managing Director Syed Hashim Raza Zaidi that this will have to end now.

The top judge asked Zaidi for a timeframe, not of two or three years, to resolve the matter.

“Otherwise, we will have to summon the chief minister once again,” he said.