Establishment Division grants proforma promotions to 13 retired officers

Islamabad

Almost 4 years after the decision of Federal Services Tribunal (FST) and 3 years after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) orders, the Establishment Division has finally issued notifications on March 25, 2016 granting proforma promotions to the 13 retired officers of secretariat group.

All 13 civil servants  retired before 2007, including Muhammad Iqbal Khan, who filed petitions along with others at FST and IHC. The 13 civil servants kept fighting legal battle for almost five to six years in the light of a 1998 Supreme Court order directing the Establishment Division to revise the seniority list.

Through proforma promotion, these retired civil servants will be promoted to grade 20, 21 and 22 on papers and their names will be published in the next issue of Gazzette of Pakistan Part-1. They will be paid arrears, allowances and service benefits from the date of their proforma promotions.

The Establishment Division has issued separate notifications for each of them and one of the notification reads “On recommendations of high level committee on FR-17(1) and with the approval of competent authority, in light of the Federal Services Tribunal judgment dated 27-01-2012, Mr. Muhammad Iqbal Khan, a retired BS-21 officer of secretariat group, is granted proforma promotion to BS-22 for payment of arrears of pay and allowances w.e.f 04-02-1997”.

The FST had allowed their application in 2012 but due to non-implementation of FST orders, these civil servants then filed petitions with the IHC. An IHC bench on April 22, 2013 had directed Establishment Division to grant proforma promotions to the petitioners as directed by the FST.

The IHC, while hearing the matter, many a time expressed its annoyance over the Establishment Division for non-implementation of the court orders.