SHC sets aside termination letters of PCSI employees

The Sindh High Court has set aside termination letters of Pakistan Cotton Standards Institute employees and restored them to their original position.

The court observed that if the federal government wants to right-size the PCSI, then the employment matters of these petitioners will be dealt with in accordance with the above service rules being regular employees.

The court observed that those petitioners who have completed their qualifying length of service should also be given pensionary benefits if their services are not required and sub-rule (2) of Rule 15 of the Service Rules should also be considered.

Petitioner Mohammad Akhyaruddin Khan and 24 others had challenged the termination letters by the PCSI and requested the court to set aside the same as being illegal. The petitioners’ counsel submitted that all the petitioners initially were inducted into the PCSI a couple of decades back, whereafter their services were regularized through office order on April 10, 2007 and those of lower income group on September 30, 2019.

He submitted that despite regularization of the petitioners they have been terminated from service by giving three months’ pay in lieu of termination, without any other post-retirement or severance benefits.

The federal government’s counsel stated that employment of the petitioners is purely on a temporary basis as reflected in their appointment contract dated September 30, 1993; therefore, by invoking Clause 15.2 of the service rules the termination letters have been issued because as per the policy decision of the federal cabinet, the PCSI is to be right-sized.

An SHC division bench comprising Justice Mohammad Faisal Kamal Alam and Justice Ms. Sana Akram Minhas observed that when the respondent’s counsel was inquired about the issuance of the office order with regard to the regularization of the petitioners, the counsel said that the regularization of petitioners were illegal as the board did not have power to regularize the employment of the petitioners.

The court observed that the respondent counsel however admitted that such regularization have never been challenged nor disputed in any legal proceedings to date. It said the arguments of the respondent counsel were not only misconceived but also misleading that the board was not empowered to regularize the service of the petitioners in light of the Supreme Court judgment that validated the powers of the board.

It said the petitioners are regular employees of the PCSI and their service has to be dealt with accordingly, that is, under the statutory service rules, containing provisions for retirement as well as pensionary benefits.

The court held that all the impugned termination letters are illegal and observed that the manner in which these petitioners were terminated from service has put a question mark on the overall right-sizing programme. It ordered restoration of the petitioners to their respective positions and observed that if government wants to right-size the PCSI, the employment matters of these petitioners will be dealt with in accordance with the service rules being regular employees.

The court held that those petitioners who have completed their qualifying length of service, should also be given pensionary benefits, if their services are not required and sub-rule (2) of rule 15 of the service rules should also be considered.