ISLAMABAD: Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Division is all set to present a summary of extension for Justice (r) Main Shakirullah Jan as the chairman of National Industrial Relations Commission (NIRC) despite the case of his appointment being challenged in the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Sources told Pakistan Today that Shakirullah’s two-year contract with NIRC, a body that deals with trade disputes and cases of unfair labour practices, will expire on September 6 and the high-ups of the ministry are trying hard for his extension.
The ministry had presented a summary of extension of the contract of NIRC chairman in the cabinet meeting held on May 8 but the summary was rejected because the meeting stated that the case for contract extension had been sent to the cabinet in haste before the 90-day deadline given in a letter of the Cabinet Division.
Now the high-ups of ministry are preparing another summary for his extension which will be presented in the first interim cabinet meeting despite the fact that appointment of chairman is under challenge before the IHC and the interim cabinet is barred to take such decisions in the light of principles envisaged in the judgment of Supreme Court (SC) in Constitutional Petition No 30 Of 2013 at Para 28 (C and D).
Sources said that a senior officer of the ministry is trying hard to get an approval of extension with a collision of former secretary cabinet who is his close friend as they worked together in the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Division.
Sources further said that NIRC chairman has neither authored a single decision of the full bench nor has he presided over a single bench during his whole period of the contract. In addition to this, not a single appeal has been decided which were transferred from the provincial appellate tribunal to NIRC. Dozens of workers have passed away while waiting to catch a glimpse of “Lady Justice” and things seem to not be less bad.
The senior officer who belongs to the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) also wishes to move a case (single nomination not panel) of his appointment as member NIRC, against the vacant post member NIRC Sukkur despite knowing well that the existing quota of member NIRC from KP is already in surplus and nomination of panel only should be made from Sindh but he deliberately suppressed the factual quota position and on the analogy of give and take, illegally moved the extension summary of NIRC chairman and tends to forward his name, recommended by NIRC chairman, for appointment as member NIRC.
The senior bureaucrat who is most interested for the extension of contract of NIRC chairman is also in favour of his appointment as member NIRC as reward, sources added.
Sources further informed that the caretaker cabinet appointed under Article 224 (1) (2) or 224A, as the case may be, is empowered to carry out only day-to-day affairs of the state with the help of the available machinery/resources/manpower and also to watch national interest against war or national calamity or disaster faced by the nation, including terrorism, and they can make a transfer posting on exception circumstance but the major policy decisions including making of appointments, transfers and postings of the government servants should be left to be made by the incoming government in view of the provisions of the constitution that the affairs of the state are to be run by the chosen representatives of the people.
It is worth mentioning here that the appointment of NIRC chairman was made by the prime minister, without the approval of cabinet who according to verdict of the SC is not a federal government and is also in violation of the dictum of National Judicial Policy and is challenged before the IHC by SC Advocate G M Choudhry but respondents, despite availing ample opportunities, failed to Submit replies in matters.
It is pertinent to mention here that the NIRC chairman is also the president of ad-hoc committee of PM&DC and enjoying the perks and privileges there too.
Senior joint secretary, while talking to Pakistan Today, stated that he cannot comment on this matter because he is not authorised to talk on important matters as the secretary is out of country and he will comment on this matter instead.
