LHC orders PIA to hire women pilots on 10% quota

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday ordered the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to continue the process of recruitment of women pilots in the national airline on the 10 per cent quota as directed in an earlier verdict.

A two-member bench of the LHC, presided over by Justice Mamoonur Rasheed, heard the case pertaining to the ignoring of quota for women pilots in the PIA.

During the course of the hearing, the court expressed annoyance at the PIA over neglecting the women’s quota while recruiting employees.

The PIA’s counsel had pleaded the court to declare the earlier verdict of the court pertaining to women quota null and void so as to select competent candidates. He was of the view that the court verdict regarding the allocation of quota for women was against the rules.

The court adjourned the hearing and sought the counsels of both parties for arguments on the next hearing.

In April 2018, the LHC had ordered the PIA to allot 10 per cent of the recruiting quota to women pilots.

The decision has come in lieu of an aspiring pilot, Komal Zafar’s petition in the LHC which accused the national airline of disregarding the women quota in its advertisement regarding fresh recruitments and termed it “unconstitutional”.

The petition was made last month and was accepted by LHC judge Farrukh Farhan Khan, who had then issued a stay order on the recruitment process on March 16 until a final ruling was passed.

Komal’s lawyer had apprised the court that PIA is still hiring new recruits without allocating any quota to women applicants, ignoring the court’s stay order.

He further appealed to the court to charge the national airline officials with contempt of court for insubordination to the court.

Justice Khan concluded the hearing by once again ordering the PIA recruitment manager to include 10 per cent quota for women and added that the process will have to be started from square one.