LHC restores SNGPL MD

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Monday restored Syed Ali Javed Hamdani as Managing Director (MD) of the Sui Northern Pipeline Limited (SNGPL), declaring the meeting of Board of Directors in which he was removed illegal.

The court issued directions to convene a fresh meeting of the board expeditiously, in accordance with the law to take stock of all events since the date of the 600th meeting of the board and necessary decisions may be taken strictly in accordance with the law in the light of observations made in the judgment.

The court in its order stated that the fresh meeting of the board should include the specific agenda for the initiation of an inquiry or removal of the incumbent CEO (Hamdani) and the board might proceed in accordance with the law.

However, the court has warned while observing that the connected contempt proceedings inter se the parties have been dropped for the time being in order to provide an opportunity to the incumbent CEO, members of the board and all other concerned to act in accordance with the law in the light of the judgment. However, any willful deviation or deliberate disobedience of the judgment by any person shall confer the right to any aggrieved person to initiate fresh contempt proceedings and in that event, all facts from the date of holding of the impugned meeting of the board can be brought under scrutiny.

In February, the SNGPL Board of Directors (BoD) in its 600th meeting had terminated the job contract of Hamdani as Managing Director (MD) of SNGPL over various charges. After which, Hamdani had challenged his removal in the court.

The court noted that it did not intend to go into the question of validity or invalidity of the meeting of the board in which the resolutions were passed as it was within the powers and functions of the board to hold meetings. The alleged irregularity involves a factual inquiry and as such, not warranted as the same is even not required to determine the pivotal question before the court, it observed.

However, it may be observed that in case of an inquiry, a proper conventional meeting of the board should have been called with a notice of seven days with a specific agenda to hold a discussion on the allegations against the CEO and in such a meeting, the CEO may have been duly confronted with the same. In case, the board deemed it necessary, it may well in the presence of the CEO, initiate any necessary investigation or inquiry and may have constituted a committee for the purpose in accordance with the law.

The bare reading of the minutes of the impugned board meeting establishes that the alleged charges against the CEO did not by any stretch of imagination required calling of an ‘emergency meeting’ with less than one-day notice with a generalized, vague and subjective agenda by dispensing the requirement of a notice of seven days, the court added.