SHC issues contempt notice to its registrar for flouting court orders

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has issued notice to its registrar to show cause why contempt of court proceedings may not ensue against him for flouting court orders.

Hearing petitions on Tuesday with regard to appointments of different posts in district judiciary Larkana on the basis of son quota, a division bench of the SHC comprising Justice Shamsuddin Abbasi and Justice Agha Faisal observed that the high court registrar appeared to have flouted the court orders as despite the passage of two weeks, no response had been filed before the court.

The bench observed that the SHC registrar had been directed to file a reply regarding how petitions in which the registrar had been impleaded as a respondent were fixed at the circuit court in prima facie violation of the Rule 6 of the Roster set by the chief justice.

The high court had directed the registrar to place on record under separate statement any policy with respect to appointment on son quota in courts under jurisdiction of the high court and also whether any restrain had been placed in such matters pursuant to orders of a competent authority.

The high court had observed that it was a settled law that recruitment in the public sector ought to be undertaken through an advertised competitive process essential for maintaining transparency in the process of induction and ensuring merit.

The SHC observed that recourse to parallel processes of recruitment had consistently been deprecated by the superior courts. The high court observed that the petitioners had sought making public sector employment an inheritable right at the manifest cost of merit.

The bench observed that the petitions were entertained at a circuit bench without any manifest directions from the chief justice and in prima facie derogation of the Rule 6 of the Roster set by the chief justice.

The SHC observed that this practice would defeat the administration of justice and upset the integrity and sanctity of the court. The high court ordered that this matter may be placed before the competent authority of senior puisne judge to consider the likelihood and severity of disciplinary proceedings against officers concerned.

The bench observed that the registrar of the high court had seemingly flouted orders of the court, and issued a show cause notice to the registrar to explain why contempt of court proceedings may not ensue against him.