PHC seeks explanation for job provision from Education Dept

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Monday asked Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Education Department to explain under which laws and rules it had inked an agreement with land owners to provide low-paid jobs in return for free land for establishment of primary schools in the province.

A division bench comprising Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Qalandar Ali Khan asked the Education Department to explain as to whether the agreement between the Education Department and landowners had any legal or constitutional protection or not.

The bench directed the Education Department in a writ petition of Muhammad Aslam, filed through his lawyer Rizwanullah.

The court questioned whether the posts would be permanently allotted to the land owners till existence of the school or on one time-basis.

The petitioner had challenged the Education Department’s agreement with the land owners who provided free of cost land to the department for establishment of primary school and the government would give class-IV job to their one family member.

During the course of hearing, the petitioner’s lawyer submitted that as per the information received from the department, the government was going to directly appoint 78 persons as class-IV employees in Peshawar, who had provided land for establishment of the schools.

The lawyer pointed out that appointment of government servants without advertisement to public on open merit was violation of Article 27 of Constitution.

He informed the bench that the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 1993 had declared that such appointments were
unlawful and against the Constitution.

The lawyer said the Education Department despite the apex court’s decision carried out illegal and unlawful appointments through the so-called agreement that has been declared unlawful by the Supreme Court. The court asked Assistant Advocate General Sikandar Shah and Officer Litigation to submit a reply within 14 days.