SHC dismisses plea against appointment of Dr Shamshad Akhtar as SSGC chairperson

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has dismissed a petition against the appointment of federal caretaker finance minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar as the chairperson of Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC).

The petitioner, Omer Khalid, had challenged the appointment of Dr Shamshad as the SSGC chairperson and sought declaration that she was ineligible to contest the elections for appointment of the SSGC board of directors.

A counsel for the petitioner submitted that Dr Shamshad Akhtar was holding a public office as the caretaker finance minister and could not retain her position as the chairperson and independent director on the board of directors of the SSGC, violating the 2023 state owned enterprises governance law as she oversaw the entire corporate sector, due to which there was a potential conflict of interest, as the financial interests of the government and the other government-owned entities did not align.

The counsel submitted that the SSGC chairperson was appointed on October 28, 2019, for three years and that period had already expired on October 2022 but Dr Shamshad was still holding the position of the chairperson without a lawful authority.

The counsel also sought a direction with regard to return of all the perks and privileges received by her after August 17, 2023, as she could not have continued as the director of the SSGC.

A division bench of the high court comprising Justice Mohammad Junaid Ghaffar and Justice Adnanul Karim Memon after hearing the counsel observed that the petitioner had not placed on record any ground which could suggest that the respondent suffered from any inherent disqualification to hold the subject post in terms of the Section 11 of the State Own Enterprises (Governance and Operations) Act.

The bench observed that merely appointment of the respondent as a minister in the caretaker setup in terms of third proviso to the Clause (1A) of the Article 224 read with the Article 58 of the Constitution could not be assumed to be a member of the Majlis-e-Shoora which comprised the elected National Assembly members, and the caretaker ministers were not chosen representatives of the people of Pakistan.

The SHC observed that the petitioner had to satisfy the court that the appointment of Dr Shamshad as the SSGC chairperson by then prime minister was tarnished by favouritism and cronyism and except unsubstantiated allegations nothing had been placed on record to support such assertion.

Regarding holding of election for the appointment of the board of directors of the SSGC, the high court observed that it is for the competent authority to take steps in accordance with law. The court observed that no merit was found in the petition and the same was dismissed along with pending applications.