Supreme Court orders appointing new ombudsman within three weeks

The Supreme Court directed the Sindh government on Tuesday to appoint a new provincial ombudsman for protection against harassment of women at workplace within three weeks in accordance with the relevant rules and laws, reports Jamal Khurshid.

The order came on Aneela Khan’s petition claiming that the current ombudsman was indulging in favouritism and nepotism, involved in financial corruption and had set up a ghost non-governmental organisation that was being operated by his family members.

She also claimed that cases and complaints that were sent to him were solved by offering the parties to compromise with one other instead of punishing or imposing a fine on the guilty parties, saying that most of the complainants were forced to compromise against their will. Advocate General Barrister Zamir Ahmed Ghumro informed the court that Sindh Ombudsman Syed Pir Ali Shah had been removed from the post and produced a notification to this effect. He said an inquiry had been initiated by the government with regard to appointments in the ombudsman’s office.

The apex court’s three-member bench headed by Justice Amir Hani Muslim directed the government to appoint the additional secretary (services) as inquiry officer, who should examine the appointments in the ombudsman’s office after verifying the eligibility of the employees. The bench directed the AG to submit a detailed report for the court’s perusal.

 

Security of courts, lawyers

The Sindh High Court directed the interior secretary and the home department to submit a concise statement with regard to security of courts and lawyers.

The bench was hearing the Sindh High Court Bar Association’s (SHCBA) petition seeking adequate security for courts and lawyers after the kidnapping of SHC Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah’s son.

The SHCBA’s counsels, Barrister Salahuddin Ahmed and Kashif Paracha, said the petition had not become infructuous (ineffective, unproductive and unfruitful) on the recovery of Barrister Owais Ali Shah, as the one of the requests of the petition required the court to direct the relevant quarters with regard to security of judges and lawyers, to devise and implement a plan to improve the existing security of the court complexes, judges and lawyers and their families, and develop a method to swiftly address and resolve any specific threats they might be facing.

The court asked the petitioners’ counsels to submit their plan with regard to security arrangements for courts and lawyers after examining the orders of the court in this aspect. Adjourning the matter until the next session, the court directed the interior secretary and the home department to submit their respective comments on the petition.